Christians dey persecuted for Ngeria as Trump dey tok?

US President Donald Trump threat to just enta Nigeria "guns-a-blazing" to stop di killing of "record numbers of Christians" no just comot from nowia.

For months, campaigners and politicians for Washington don dey tok say Islamist militants just dey plan and target Christinas for Nigeria.

But di BBC don find out say some of di data wey dem carry reach dis conclusion dey hard to verify.

For September, popular TV host and comedian, Bill Maher just increase evritin as e describe wetin dey happun as "genocide".

E refer to di Boko Haram group say "dem don kill ova 100,000 since 2009 and dem don burn 18,000 churches".

Pipo wit di influence don dey also ginger pipo for social media.

Di Nigerian govment for Abuja don push back against dis claims as dem call dem say dem be "a gross misrepresentation of reality".

Dem no deny say deadly kasala dey happun for di kontri. But officials tok say, "terrorists dey attack evribodi wey no gree for dia kill-kill ideology - Muslims, Christians and those wey no gey faith join".

Oda groups wey dey torchlight political violence for Nigeria say di numbers of Christians wey dem don kill dey far lower as most of di victims of jihadist groups na Muslims.

Nigerian secuirty analyst Christina Ani tok say even though dem dey attack Christians as part of bigger move to create terror, e no dey possible to justify claims say na Christians gan-gan dem dey torchlight.

And Nigeria dey face plenty security kasala all ova di kontri and no be just kasala from jihadist groups. And all dis different kasala get different reasons so make dem no dey confused.

Di kontri 220 million pipo roughly divide half - half between di two religions. Muslims na dem plenti pass for di north, wia most attacks dey happun.

Wetin US politicians dey tok?

Texas Senator Ted Cruz don dey campaign on top dis mata from time and even tok di kain numbers wey Maher tok on 7 October.

E write for X say "since 2009, ova 50,000 Christians for Nigeria don dey massacred and ova 18,000 churches and 2,000 Christian schools don dey destroyed".

Im office send email wia e clear di air say di senator no dey call am "genocide" like Maher but e call am "persecution".

But Cruz accuse Nigerian officials say dem dey "ignore and even ginger di murder of Christians by Islamist jihadists".

Trump wey tok di same tin use am call Nigeria say na "disgraced kontri", and say di goment "kontinu to do dey allow di killing of Christians".

Di Nigerian goment don deny am say dem dey do dia best to handle di jihadists. Some officials don also welcome di idea say US go help fight insurgents as long as dem no just run am by demsef.

True-true, di authorities don struggle to handle di violent jihadist groups and criminal networks. Dis na as most weeks be like dem dey come wit new new tori of fresh attacks or kidnapping.

Boko Haram wey dey known for di kidnapping of di Chibok girls ova 10 years ago, don dey active since 2009 but most of dia work na for di north-east wey gey mostly Muslim population.

Oda jihadist groups don also land wey include di Islamic State West Africa Province but dem also dey do dia activities for di north-east.

Di numbers of Christian deaths wey some for American dey tok dey scary but to find out weda dem be true, na anoda mata.

Wia dia numbers dey come from?

As to wetin be di souce of dia data, Cruz for one podcast for September, bin refer to one 2023 report by di International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (InterSociety) - wey be non-govmental organisation wey dey torchlight and track human rights abuses across Nigeria.

Im office also send BBC some links to online tori on di mata. But most dem bin link back to InterSociety.

Maher no ansa to BBC request for di source of im own numbers but as e be say im numbers dey like di ones wey Cruz use, e be like na also from di work of InterSociety.

For data wey fit dey shape US policy for Nigeria, InterSociety work no clear.

For report wey dem publish for August, wey combine previous research and updated numbers for 2025, e tok say jihadist groups for Nigeria don kill ova 100,000 Christians for di 16 years since 2009.

E also note say 60,000 "moderate Muslims" bin also die for dat time.

InterSociety no give list of sources wey make am hard to verify di full number of deaths e dey report.

To ansa dis criticism, di organisation tok say "e dey almost impossiple to reproduce all our reports and dia references wey go back to 2010. Our easy method na to pick dia summary statistics and add dem to our fresh discoveries or findings to create our new reports".

But di data sources wey InterSociety dey quote no get di figures wey dem publish.

What about who bin dey killed for 2025?

For di deaths wey happun dis year, InterSociety conclude say between January and August, na just ova 7,000 Christians dey killed.

Dis na anoda number wey pipo don dey quote all ova social media. Pipo like Republican Congressman Riley M Moore, wey don be leading voice for dis mata for di House of Representatives.

InterSociety add list of 70 media houses as some of dia sources for wetin dem find about di attacks on Christians for 2025.

But di wahala be say in like half of dis cases, di original news tori no tok anytin about di religion of di victims.

For instance, InterSociety bin quote one Al Jazeera report of di attack for north-eastern Nigeria, and tok say according to di news organisation "no less dan 40 farmers wey be mainly Christians don dey abducted by Boko Haram for Damboa part of Borno State".

But di Al Jazeera tori no tok anytin say di victims na "mainly Christians", as InterSociety quote dem say dem tok.

InterSociety tell BBC say dem do more analysis to find out wia dem come from. Dem no explain how dem do am for dis situation but dem mention say dem get knowledge of local populations and how dem dey use "Christian media reports".

But di number of deaths wey dey for di reports wey InterSociety dey quote no reach di total of 7,000 wey dem dey tok.

Di BBC add di number of deaths from di 70 reports and find out say di deaths na around 3,000. E be like dem report some of di attacks more than once.

To explain di mata, InterSociety say dem also dey estimate di number of pipo wey dem believe bin die for captivity plus eyewitness testimonies wey dem no fit tok come outside.

Who dey behind di killings?

For dia list of offenders na Islamist militant groups like Boko Haram but also Fulani herders.

Di Fulanis na mainly Muslim ethnic group wey dey live all ova West Africa don traditionally dey make money from raising cattle and sheep.

Di inclusion of di Fulani herders, wey InterSociety dey call "jihadists" for all dia reports na sources of wahala for Nigeria ova how dem dey arrange dis killings.

While herders normally be Muslims, many researchers for field reject tok say dia kasala na religious mata. Dem say most of di time, na about how to get land and water.

Fulani herders don get kwanta wit both Muslim and Christian communities around Nigeria.

Security analyst, Oga Ani dey argue say, "to say dem be jihadist, na long tin. E no get anytin to di wit dat. Na more about criminal elements".

Confidence McHarry, wey be senior security analyst for Africa-focussed consultancy SBM Intelligence tok say most times di kasala na bicos of ethnic tensions and competition for resources.

"E fit dey ethnic in nature, dem wan grab lands, expand dia territories, but di more dem dey pursue communities comot and di more dem dey attack worship centres, di more dem go dey look dis kain tins wit dat kain eye".

InterSociety also mention who dem dey call for Nigeria say dem be bandits, dem tok say dem be mostly ethnic Fulanis for di north-west of di kontri wey dey do kidnapping and get history of killing both Christians and Muslims.

Who don dey campaign on dis mata?

E don tay wey politicians for di United State and international Christian groups don dey tok about dia worry ova threats wey dey face Nigerian Christians.

Bifor, for years, na di Indigenous People of Biafra (Ipob) wey dey proscribed for Nigeria say dem wan create dia own kontri wit mainly di Christian south-east bin carry di mata go US.

Di Nigerian military don accuse InterSociety say dem get link wit Ipob but di NGO say na lie.

Anoda Biafran separatist group don also claim say dem play major role for di promotion for di "Christian Genocide" tori for di US Congress.

Di Biafra Republic Government in Exile, BRGIE call am "highly orchestrated effort" say dem hire lobby firms and bin meet US officials plus including Cruz sef.

Di senator no gree ansa dat one.

Wetin oda research groups dey tok?

InterSociety numbers dey far higher dan oda sources of data about how many Christians don dey killed for Nigeria.

Acled, wey dey torchlight violence for West Africa don comot wit differenct numbers. Di sources wey dem get for di published findings dey easy to trace and cross-check.

Dia senior analyst, Ladd Stewart don gree address InterSociety reports head on but tell di BBC say di number of 100,000 deaths wey dem dey carry loud am for social media up and down, go include all di acts of political violence for Nigeria and so e no go dey true say na di numbers of Christians wey don die since 2009.

Acled find out say na just under 53,000 civilians weda na Christians or Muslims na im don dey reported say dem kill for targeted political kasala since 2009.

Acled torchlight just di period from 2020 to September 2025 and tok say na about 21,000 civillians don dey killed for kidnap attacks, sexual kasala and di use of explosives.

Dem find 384 times wia Christians bin dey targetted specifically from 2020 to September 2025 wia 317 pipo die, dis mean say dem dey account for small proportions of di pipo wey don dey killed.

For dia sources, Acled dey rely on traditional media, social media wia di tori fit dey verified, rights groups plus including local partners.

How about Trump numbers?

Last Friday, for Truth Social Trump post number of 3,100 Christians wey dem don kill.

E bin dey tok about one report wey Open Doors release about di number of deaths for 12 months wey start from October 2023, according to White House official.

Open Doors na charity wey dey do research on di persecution of Christians for di world.

Dia report say while 3,100 Christians die, dem also kill 2,320 Muslims for dat 12 months.

Open Doors also include wetin dem dey call "Fulani Terror Groups" for dia list of who dey do am and say dem dey responsible for about one third of di Christians wey dem kill in those 12 months.

Senior research fellow for Open Doors, Frans Verrman say "wetin we dey see now na say Christians still dey targetted but some Muslims don dey increasingly targeted by Fulani militants".

Analysts say plenti violent attacks for Mosques and Muslim communities dey happun for di north-west of di kontri.

Oga McHarry say, "pesin fit see am as part of broader insecurity. Di reason wey e no fit dey assumed say na for religious reasons na bicos di fact be say di identity of di pipo wey dey attack Muslims, demselves be Muslims."