US President Donald Trump has said the American military could deploy troops to Nigeria or carry out air strikes to stop what he described as the killing of large numbers of Christians in the West African country.
Asked if he envisioned troops on the ground or air strikes in Nigeria, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One: “Could be. I mean, other things. I envisage a lot of things. They’re killing record numbers of Christians in Nigeria … They’re killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers. We’re not going to allow that to happen.”
Trump made the comment on Sunday evening as he headed back to Washington after spending the weekend at his vacation home in Florida.
The US president had earlier on Saturday threatened to take military action against Nigeria if Africa’s most populous nation failed to stop the killing of Christians.
The warning came a day after his administration returned Nigeria to a “Countries of Particular Concern” list, a group of nations Washington accuses of violating religious freedoms. Other countries on the list include China, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia and Pakistan.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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