As a former kidnapping victim of Boko Haram, I have walked through the ruins of villages that once thrived and now lay in ashes. Every day I live with the knowledge that my survival is a miracle and that millions of others face a different fate. With the West’s silence, the violence continues to spread and threaten the entire continent. This is not just a matter of ‘clashes’ between farmers and herders – it’s a campaign of terror with the goal of erasing Christian communities from the region.
It started two years ago when I was held captive by Boko Haram in a hidden cell with no light, no food, and no hope. Each night I prayed to God for my family and for the chance to live. By sheer will, I escaped, but the reality is that most of my fellow Christians do not survive these attacks. The Nigerian government has failed to protect its people. Instead, they have downplayed the crisis, refusing to provide food, shelter, or security for those displaced.
Today, as I travel through Nigeria with iReach Global, the situation has only worsened. In April, multiple coordinated assaults in the Bokkos area claimed hundreds of lives within a week. One village alone reported 52 deaths in a single attack, forcing thousands to flee the region. In Bassa, at least 51 people were murdered during a pre-dawn raid, with attackers setting homes on fire and killing entire families as they slept. In Riyom, attacks continued for months, with a bus full of passengers ambushed and 12 people killed on the spot.
The violence is not random. These are strategic, organized attacks aimed at wiping out Christian communities in the Middle Belt region of Nigeria. The Nigerian government bears the primary responsibility to protect its people. They must immediately deploy fully-resourced security forces to safeguard vulnerable communities, especially during planting and harvest seasons when farmers are most exposed. Humanitarian corridors must be opened to provide food and aid to displaced families, many of whom now live on one meal a day, drinking from muddy puddles without medical care.
Independent investigations are crucial. Impunity fuels these killings. Perpetrators must be held accountable, regardless of their political connections or tribal affiliations. The political class must stop using the blood of victims as campaign slogans. The lives of our people are not bargaining chips. The United States, in particular, has a moral obligation to press Nigeria towards real accountability. The State Department should reinstate Nigeria’s designation as a Country of Particular Concern for religious persecution. This would send a clear message that the world is watching and that the killing of Christians in Nigeria will not be ignored.
International partners should also expand support for independent investigations and humanitarian assistance. The needs are immense. In some camps, families survive on one meal a day, drinking from muddy puddles. Children go months without schooling, and the psychological trauma of surviving an attack is profound. The international community can help fund the rebuilding of homes and provide psychosocial support for those who have endured unspeakable loss.
The victims of these attacks are not soldiers or combatants. They are farmers, families, children, and elders who want nothing more than to live in peace, tend their fields, and worship freely. Yet they have become targets of a campaign of hate. If urgent action is not taken, we risk seeing entire Christian communities vanish from the Middle Belt. Not only that, but the reign of terror could spread across the Sahel region of Africa and ultimately threaten global security.
We are at a critical juncture. The world cannot remain complicit. The suffering here is real and growing. As someone who has survived the terror of Boko Haram, I beg the global community: Do not look away. The silence of the world will be remembered as complicity. With courage and help from the international community, we can still stop the slaughter and begin the long work of rebuilding.