United States Congressman, Riley Moore, is set to brief U.S President Donald Trump on his recent fact-finding mission to Nigeria.
Pan-Atlantic Kompass reports that Moore is set to brief Trump on the security situation in Nigeria as the U.S begins fine-tuning possible penalties following Nigeria’s redesignation as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) over genocide targeting Christians.
Moore, a Republican lawmaker, speaking to the press following the conclusion of his visit to Nigeria, disclosed that the U.S delegation travelled through Benue State in armoured vehicles due to security threats, meeting victims of attacks, Christian associations, and religious leaders.
Moore said the mission of the visit was aimed at gathering first-hand evidence on the violence affecting Christian communities.
He said: “This mission was part of our report. This was a fact-finding mission. There were five members of Congress in total who went there. We went to Benue State, which is one of the most dangerous states in Nigeria. This is where all the Christians, a majority of them, are being murdered for their faith in Jesus Christ.
“But I felt that we had to go there. So we went in armoured vehicles with security and went there and visited with these people, visited with these Christians, Christian associations, Bishop Anagbe, the Catholic Church, and Protestant leaders as well, and got the ground truth that we’re going to go report back to the president,” he said.
The lawmaker added that Trump had directed him and House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole to compile recommendations.
“He’s asked me and Chairman Tom Cole to give him a report and report back to him. And we’re going to do that by the end of this month,” he said.
Moore described the testimonies he heard in the internally displaced persons (IDP) camps as “shocking”.
“It was really shocking. The stories that we heard, the imagery, I’ve never witnessed anything like that personally in my life. I met a woman who had lost her entire family. Five of her children were murdered right in front of her.
“She was pregnant at the time and was able to escape. She had that child in an internally displaced camp. You could just see that her soul had literally left her body. And there are countless stories like this.”
Narrating another case, he said, “Another woman was attacked. Her family was attacked. She lost her husband, her two daughters. And they murdered her unborn child. These Islamic terrorists murdered her unborn child and took it right out of her.”
Moore criticised continued assaults on displacement camps, rejecting explanations that the conflict is solely driven by environmental or economic factors.
“They’re in IDP camps. But the Fulani, these Islamic radicals, are attacking the IDP camps. They’re attacking them in the camps. And for those who say this is about climate change and land and things like that, and economically driven, why would you burn down a church?
“Why would you attack an IDP camp? Screaming Allahu Akbar. I think that it’s very clear what the answer is there. They’re trying to erase the Christians in Benue State and around Nigeria from their ancestral homeland,” he lamented.
Pan-Atlantic Kompass reports that Moore, alongside the U.S congressional delegation, arrived in Abuja, Nigeria, on Sunday.
During the visit, Moore and the delegation met the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, in Abuja to discuss counter-terrorism, insecurity, and regional stability.
Ribadu said the talks were built on earlier engagements held in Washington.
Moore also visited traditional and religious leaders, including Bishop Wilfred Anagbe, Bishop Isaac Dugu, and Tor Tiv V James Ioruza.
Earlier, Moore praised the Nigerian Government for the rescue of 100 abducted children in Niger State, calling it “a positive indication” of President Bola Tinubu’s security efforts.
He also expressed optimism that a joint task force established between the U.S State Department and Nigerian authorities will address concerns about religious persecutions in Nigeria.
