A coalition of more than 30 religious leaders and religious freedom advocates signed a letter to President Donald Trump Oct. 15, urging him to designate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) due to the ongoing massacre of Christians at the hands of Islamic terrorists in the country.

“U.S. law warrants CPC designation when a country is found to be ‘tolerating’ serious violations of religious freedom, as well as when itself carries out violation,” the letter, obtained by CatholicVote, states. “The Nigerian government is directly violating religious freedom by enforcing Islamic blasphemy laws that carry the death penalty and harsh prison sentences against citizens of various religions.”

According to their letter, 52,000 Christians have been killed and more than 20,000 churches have been attacked and destroyed since 2009. Islamic terrorists have murdered or raped thousands of Christians this year alone, and more than 100 Christian pastors and Catholic priests have been taken hostage and held for ransom.

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Militant members of the Fulani Muslim tribe are targeting Christian farming families, especially in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, while Boko Haram and other Islamic terrorist groups have repeatedly carried out violent attacks on Christians across the country, the leaders added. 

The signatories noted that in addition to enforcing blasphemy laws, the Nigerian government has refused to protect the persecuted Christians, though it takes action against other terrorist groups. The government does not investigate Fulani terrorists, enforce the country’s ban on guns, act to return stolen land to Christians, or take steps to aid Christians during attacks, among other failures to shield Christians, they added. 

These factors have led Open Doors, a religious freedom watchdog, along with other organizations, to call Nigeria the most deadly country in the world to be a Christian.

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CatholicVote President Kelsey Reinhardt was among those who signed the letter. In a statement, she said, “As Catholics committed to religious freedom, we cannot ignore Nigeria’s rapid descent into a killing ground for Christians.”

She later added, “This is not ‘communal violence.’ It is systematic persecution against Christians. A government that refuses to protect its Christian population — or worse, enables their attackers — must be held accountable.”

The leaders noted that Trump had designated Nigeria as a CPC in his first term, a label that the Biden administration later revoked, saying that climate change was to blame for ethnic clashes in the region. In the letter, the leaders urged Trump to redesignate Nigeria as a CPC rather than placing it on the International Religious Freedom Act’s Special Watch List.

“We believe that, after nearly five years of simply ‘watching’ the arrest of individuals on harsh blasphemy charges and the relentless massacre and persecution of defenseless Christians solely for their faith, assigning only Special Watch List status would be a weak and legally inadequate response,” the leaders stated. “Such a move would dishonor religious freedom as a core pillar of U.S. foreign policy and further reinforce the previous administration’s downgrade and sidelining of the targeted killing of Christians.

“We, therefore,” they concluded, “respectfully urge you to designate Nigeria as a CPC without further delay.”