Waltz, Brownback Praise Action in Nigeria, Press for Sustained Pressure

Hours before news broke of the U.S. troops’ presence in Nigeria, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz on Wednesday suggested that the Trump administration would remain committed to stopping the slayings of Christians. And he thanked rapper Nicki Minaj for her unexpected help in raising awareness about the massacres in Nigeria, which have been taking place in record numbers for more than a decade.

“I did not have Nicki Minaj, one of the world’s greatest rappers, on my dance card when I got sworn in as U.N. ambassador,” he told the summit. “I didn’t foresee that one.”

But Waltz has been exceedingly encouraged by Minaj’s commitment to the issue and lauded her ability to raise awareness about the atrocities taking place in Nigeria. More Christians were killed in Nigeria last year than in the rest of the world, according to a mid-January report by Open Doors, a Netherlands-based Christian nonprofit that tracks global persecution. Of the 4,849 Christians killed for their faith worldwide, 3,490 were in Nigeria, the group’s World Watch List 2026 found.

Christians make up nearly half of Nigeria’s population of 200 million, but they are the victims of the vast majority of the attacks. 

“[Minaj] is a person that has a quarter billion followers across all of her platforms – people who may not think about or even realize the extent and the gravity of these issues,” Waltz said, noting that Minaj’s pastor is Nigerian, which helped her home in on the issue.

Because of Minaj’s passion, Waltz said the two now have something in common, as he recalled helping to rescue Nigerian girls sold into ISIS slavery while he served as a Green Beret.

He credited Minaj’s involvement with helping to produce “meaningful action to protect these poor people that are literally having their churches burned down, priests beheaded, people chased out of their homes because they call Christ their Savior.”

After news broke of the U.S. troop presence in Nigeria, Christian leaders from the country celebrated, heaping praise on Trump for action after decades of the international community ignoring or diminishing the tragedy.

Dr. Isa El-Buba, a Nigerian Christian minister, thanked Trump for “listening to the voice and cry of the Nigerian people.”

“Genocide has been on for all these years, but right now we can testify that we’re beginning to see the change in terms of the attitude and the behavior of the government of Nigeria and the terrorists,” he said.

“We are gathered here not because Nigeria is weak, but because Nigeria is bleeding,” El-Buba continued. “What began as persecution of the Christian community has spilled over the killing of moderate, moderate Muslims … and the destruction of entire civilization that has taken place.”

Some longtime advocates for more action in Nigeria cited recent reports that 80 Christians were allowed to return home after being abducted from three churches in northern Nigeria. But calls for sustained action from the Trump administration continued.

Sam Brownback, a former Kansas governor, senator, and ambassador for religious freedom during the first Trump administration, praised Trump for putting Nigeria “on notice” while calling for “long-term, sustainable change to protect Christians and moderate Muslims.”

Brownback noted that Trump, in his first term, placed Nigeria on the State Department watch list of “countries of particular concern,” a significant messaging step, but then failed to sustain enough pressure on the Nigerian government to bring lasting relief from the massacres and abductions. President Biden removed Nigeria from the CPC watchlist. In late October, Trump once again redesignated Nigeria as a CPC and vowed to do everything in his power, including have the U.S. military come in “guns blazin’,” to stop the violence.

After Biden’s election, Brownback said, the “sheriff was gone” and all the rats came back out, so this time there have to be systems in place that protect Christians and moderate Muslim both in the Middle-Belt area, where Fulani herders, militant Islamicists who often attack Christians, live and operate, and in the Northeast.

Specifically, Brownback called for sanctions on politically sensitive products and suggested “mixed nuts” or “tree nuts,” a big Nigerian export.

“That’s politically sensitive to them, and if it’s hit hard, that’s a targeted move,” he told RealClearPolitics in an interview. “The bombing was right, and he got cooperation from the Nigerian [government], which is pretty amazing, but it was because I think they really don’t want us looking at the Middle Belt, which is where the longer-term problem really is.”

The Biden administration attributed the slaughter of Christians in Nigeria, which make up nearly half the population, not to religious persecution but to a conflict over resources exacerbated by climate change. Open Doors and other advocates ardently disagree about the main motivation, although most groups involved believe the conflict isn’t purely religious in nature but also involves conflicts over power and control over land and resources – because Christians own most of the farming areas.

DeDe Laugesen, president of Save the Persecuted Christians, since 2018 has helped organize a coalition of 200 leaders comprising civil society organizations, faith leaders, and other advocates, to call for congressional action and help elevate the issue on the international stage.

Laugesen helped bring Rebecca Sharibu, whose daughter Leah was abducted from her small village in northern Nigeria, to the IRF Summit. Leah was forced to marry a member of Boko Haram, a Muslim terrorist group, and is being forced to remain in the camp and to bear his children.

“We love Leah and we expect her to come back home as soon as possible,” she said.

Earlier in the day, Enes Kanter Freedom, who is exiled from Turkey for speaking out against the government there and encountered resistance from the NBA for condemning Chinese persecution of Uyghur Muslims, argued that the summit provides courage and hope.

“It feels like a family,” he said. “Once you walk in, you see people of all different colors, different religions, different ethnicity, different backgrounds, but we are all here for one simple reason: to fight against dictatorships and try to bring freedom into this world.”

Reading the Dalai Lama’s letter to the estimated 1,500 religious, government and charitable leaders who attended the summit, Nancy Pelosi described the benefits of religious pluralism the summit embodies and promotes. 

“Although the world’s religions are diverse in their traditions and philosophies, they share the same essential message of love, compassion, forgiveness, contentment and self-discipline,” the Dalai Lama said in the statement read by Pelosi. “These values are not intended only for followers of a particular religion. They are universal and relevant to every human being.”

The leader of Tibetan Buddhism said it’s “deeply regrettable” that religion has often been the source of division and conflict.

“In the 21^st century, humanity must move beyond old divisions and learn not only to work together, but to live together,” the Dalai Lama stated. “Cooperation among different faiths and cultures is no longer optional. It is essential to our shared future.”