New Data Shows Nigerian Christians Killed at a Rate Four Times Higher Than Muslims

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: Nov. 25, 2025

Media CONTACT
ALLISON BRADLEY press@equippingthepersecuted.org

Judd Saul — Founder, Equipping the Persecuted.org & TruthNigeria.com
Available for Interviews

As Americans gather for Thanksgiving this week, millions will pause to give thanks — including more than 500,000 Nigerian Christians living in the U.S. Many are grateful for President Donald Trump’s unapologetic call for an end to the slaughter in Nigeria.

“It’s good news that Nigerian officials are suddenly talking about ‘strengthened security partnerships’ with the United States,” says Judd Saul, filmmaker, missionary, and founder of TruthNigeria.com. “But you can’t fix a crisis you refuse to diagnose truthfully.”

This diplomatic shift follows President Trump’s early-November warning that America will not stand by while “radical Islamists continue killing Christians in very large numbers.”

A Nigerian delegation — led by National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu — made a charm-tour of Washington last week to downplay U.S. concerns. Afterward, presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga announced that the U.S. had affirmed its readiness to deepen cooperation, including intelligence support and expedited defense equipment.

Equipping the Persecuted Responds

According to Saul, cooperation means nothing if Nigerian leaders continue denying the root cause.

“The driving force behind the mass killings in Nigeria is radical Islamification — a coordinated effort to seize Christian land and erase Christian communities,” Saul says. “At Equipping the Persecuted and TruthNigeria, we see the bodies. We rescue the survivors. We document what the government refuses to admit.”

Saul added a fresh warning about the escalating crisis:

“Over the last seven days alone, more than 500 Christians have been kidnapped across Nigeria. There is no possible explanation for this level of coordinated terrorism other than government complicity — whether by action or by deliberate inaction. Nigeria’s leaders know what is happening, and they are letting it happen.”

Despite this, Nigerian officials left Washington insisting there is no targeted persecution of Christians.

“That claim is an outright lie,” Saul says. “And every official making it knows exactly what they’re doing.”

Freshly released findings from the Observatory for Religious Freedom in Africa expose the truth Nigerian officials are desperate to conceal.

THE FACTS THEY DON’T WANT YOU TO SEE

Civilian Deaths in Nigeria’s Terror War (2019–2025)

Total civilians killed: 42,033
Total terrorists/security forces killed: 37,290

Who the Terrorists Are Killing

· 22,835 Christians

· 10,519 Muslims

· 184 traditionalists

· 8,495 unidentified

Ratios

· Christians killed vs. Muslims killed: 2.2 to 1

· Adjusted for state population: 4.4 to 1

Who’s Doing the Killing

· Fulani terrorist groups: 18,577 civilian deaths

· Unidentified terror groups: 13,346

· Boko Haram + ISWAP combined: 4,941

Christian Victims by Group

· 53% of Christian deaths (12,160) committed by “Unidentified Groups” —
more than Boko Haram and ISWAP combined

· 8% (1,901) killed by Boko Haram/ISWAP

Saul’s Final Word

“The Nigerian government can run, but it cannot hide from these numbers,” Saul says. “For years, government spokesmen — along with too many Western diplomats — have allowed genocide deniers to twist the narrative and deceive the world.”

“And let me be clear: there will be an extra-hot place in hell for those who deny the genocide of Christians in Nigeria.”