US President Donald Trump has claimed that American military strikes in Nigeria have 'largely ended' the killing of Christians in the country, a statement that has drawn sharp pushback from Nigerians and security analysts. Speaking at an event in Washington, Trump defended his administration's military operations against fighters linked to the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
Trump's Claims on Christian Killings
'As you know, we recently struck Nigeria and largely ended the slaughter of great Christian populations,' Trump said. 'They have a great Christian population, they were being butchered. Thousands and thousands of people were being killed, children, women, old people, just being slaughtered, hacked to death.' He went further, claiming the strikes had crippled the group's leadership structure. 'They know that if they go further, the attack will be far greater, and that they don't want to really get involved anymore, so much, you know, we hit them very hard. We knocked out their leader, their second leader, their third leader,' he said.
Reality of US-Nigeria Operations
That part of his claim lines up with real operations. In May 2026, a joint US-Nigeria mission killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, identified by US officials as ISIS's second-in-command in the region, along with several other commanders in the same strike. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth described the operation as the result of a months-long pursuit dating back to November 2025, when Trump first ordered the Department of War to prepare action over Christian persecution claims. Further joint strikes followed in Borno State in May and June, killing dozens more fighters linked to ISWAP, according to Nigeria's Defence Headquarters.
Backlash Over 'Ended' Claim
But it's the word 'ended' that has triggered backlash. Critics argue that while strikes have taken out senior commanders, attacks on civilians, both Christian and Muslim, have continued well into 2026, with no clear sign of the violence stopping. Certain sources continue to push back on the broader framing of the conflict as religiously targeted, describing the 'Christian genocide' narrative as a hoax, and insisting that Boko Haram and ISWAP attacks have never been driven by religion alone. Bandits continue to terrorise local communities in Nigeria. Independent conflict trackers, including ACLED, have also reported continued violence in central Nigeria into 2026, with killings tied more to land disputes between farmers and herders than to coordinated religious persecution.
Online Reaction and Official Response
Online, the reaction to Trump's comments has leaned heavily critical, with many accusing him of overstating progress for political effect, while attacks, kidnappings, and displacement continue to affect communities across the north and central regions. Nigerian authorities have not issued an official response to Trump's latest remarks at the time of this report.
