Expert witnesses told a joint US congressional briefing on Tuesday that the United States must compel President Bola Tinubu to declare Sharia criminal law unconstitutional in the twelve northern states and immediately disband Hisbah religious police commissions to halt systematic anti-Christian persecution.
Dr. Ebenezer Obadare, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, testified that Boko Haram, ISWAP, and radicalised Fulani militants exploit Sharia frameworks and Hisbah operatives to enforce forced conversions and operate with impunity.
He recommended Washington maintain intense pressure on Abuja, citing recent Nigerian concessions, including airstrikes on Boko Haram, recruitment of 30,000 additional police, and a declared national security emergency as proof that “the authorities are not impervious to incentives.”
Lawmakers from both parties labelled Nigeria “ground zero” for global Christian persecution and accused the government of complicity in what they called “religious cleansing” in the north and Middle Belt.
The bipartisan session, led by Appropriations Vice Chair Mario Díaz-Balart (R-FL), signalled support for tying future US security assistance to the abolition of Sharia criminal codes and Hisbah forces.
The briefing follows President Donald Trump’s October 31 redesignation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern and his threat of unilateral military action if Abuja fails to end alleged religious freedom violations.
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