US President Donald Trump caused alarm across Nigeria over the weekend when he said he was contemplating military action in Africa’s most populous nation in response to what he claimed was a “mass slaughter” of Christians by Islamist insurgents.
The reality on the ground, experts and analysts say, is a more complex and nuanced one. Both Christians and Muslims — the two main religious groups in the country of more than 230 million people — have been victims of attacks by radical Islamists, they say.
The West African nation has grappled for years with deep-rooted security problems that are driven by various factors, including religiously motivated attacks. Observers say other violent conflicts arise from communal and ethnic tensions, as well as disputes between farmers and herders over limited access to land and water resources.
The Nigerian government rejects claims that it is not doing enough to protect Christians from violence, saying it was bewildered by Trump’s suggestion of a potential military intervention.
“We are shocked that President Trump is mulling an invasion of our country,” Nigerian presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga told CNN after the US president instructed the Pentagon to prepare for possible military action.
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