Nigeria Likened to Syria in New Documentary
By Ebere Inyama
(Benue State, Nigeria) — A team of journalists from Bosnia and Herzegovina who traveled to Yelewata, Benue State, in late 2025 have released a searing new documentary that lays bare what they witnessed. Their film, “War on Christianity: The Last Line of Faith”, captures the aftermath of a June 13, 2025, attack in which Fulani militia killed more than 200 villagers, burned homes to the ground, and forced entire communities into flight
The “War On Christianity: The Last Line of Faith’, shows hundreds of villagers who were displaced from their homes in Yelewata after 200 people were massacred and houses burnt during a deadly attack carried out by the Fulani ethnic militia on 13 June, 2025.
“A hundred thousand dead, eight thousand churches burnt. All these in the 21st century,” began Australian journalist, Stefan Petrovik, in the documentary.
“And it is not just Nigeria. There are other places where Christians are targets for example Syria,” he continued.
“Before the war, Syria had almost 2 million Christians but now, barely 300,000.
“This was once the cradle of faith. Now monasteries are closed, churches turned into barracks, icons burnt and Syria’s leader welcomed in the west,” he added.
The comment by Petrovic amplifies an earlier statement made by United Nations refugee chief, António Guterres.
“I understand that the international community is now very focused on Iraq, on Syria, but let’s be clear what is happening in Nigeria is very similar to what is happening in Syria,” Guterres told V.O.A in an interview.
“It is the same kind of problem and it requires the same kind of commitment, the same type of support from the international community,” he added.
Survivors recount ordeal
“They attacked us and killed many people in my presence, including my brother, my senior brother and my brother’s son,” said Hanatu Katghaya, a survivor who featured in the documentary.
“They expelled us from our village and we ran into the hills,” she continued.
“We could not flash our torch lights so as not to expose our location and we stuff handkerchiefs in our babies’ mouths to prevent them from crying.
“They searched for us in the bushes like hunters would search for game in a forest,” Katghaya added.
Also speaking about the Yelewata massacre, a kindred Head in Yelwatta, Chief Clement Yoshe, recounts his ordeal.
“There was a genocide that occurred here in Yelwatta on the 13th of June, 2025,” Yoshe said in the documentary.
“People were massacred, burnt to ashes,” he added.
Conflict or genocide?
“The conflict in Nigeria is not actually a conflict rather it is violence organized and systematically executed against Christians,” said TruthNigeria’s reporter, Luka Binyat, while responding to questions from Mr. Petrovic in the documentary.
“Thousands of victims have been killed, thousands of churches have been burnt and no less than 5 million people have been displaced from their homes”, Binnyat added.
A Call for Help
“No Nigerian should be subjected to this kind of treatment” said the co – founder of Overflowing Grace International Gospel Center, Reverend Jed D’Grace during an interview with Australian journalist, Petrovik.
“This is pure dehumanization,” he continued.
“The frontline news media is not carrying the real stories.
“Nigerian citizens don’t have to suffer in their country and that is why we are telling the whole world this story so that they can come to our rescue.
“We thank God that this message has got to President Donald Trump,” he added.
Response by the U.S Government
Barely one month after the visit to Nigeria by the Bosnia team, U.S. Africa Command conducted strikes against ISIS terrorists in Nigeria, in Sokoto State.
The strikes which were carried out at the direction of the U.S. president, in coordination with Nigerian authorities, resulted in the killing of multiple ISIS terrorists in their camps, according to the command’s assessment.
Background
In November, 2025, a filmmaker from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Anja Grubacic and an Australian journalist, Stefan Petrovic visited the scene of the massacre at Yelewata, according to an earlier report by TruthNigeria.
The scenes witnessed at Yelewata as well as testimonies from survivors prompted Grubacic to produce a documentary film on the plight of Christians in Nigeria.
‘War on Christianity’ which premiered Feb 9, 2026, examines the global persecution of Christians — from burned villages in Nigeria to erased communities in the Balkans. It looks at how violence is explained away, how narratives are shaped, and how one of the world’s largest religious groups became invisible in plain sight
At the center of the story is faith itself — as a way of life. From communities targeted for their beliefs to those who quietly preserved them despite war, sanctions, and political pressure. The film follows a line that connects Africa, the Middle East, Europe, and the West.
Ebere Inyama is a conflict reporter for TruthNigeria.
