Ebenezer Obadare, a Senior Fellow for Africa Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), has emphasized to U.S. lawmakers that Nigeria’s path to lasting peace is deeply tied to a robust and decisive campaign against Boko Haram.
He underscores that without a sustained effort to dismantle the group, the country will continue to face instability, particularly in the northeast where Boko Haram’s insurgency has caused widespread displacement and humanitarian crises.
Speaking at a joint congressional briefing of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Obadare said Nigeria’s spiralling insecurity is inseparable from the operations of jihadist groups—chief among them Boko Haram.
The session was convened as Congress probes rising religious persecution and targeted killings of Christians in Nigeria.
Obadare outlined a two-pronged U.S. policy recommendation: “First, work with the Nigerian military to neutralize Boko Haram. Second, press Abuja to reform domestic laws by making Sharia unconstitutional in the twelve northern states that adopted it since 2000, and disband Hisbah groups enforcing Islamic codes on non-Muslims.”
The scholar described Boko Haram as “the deadliest and most serious threat confronting the Nigerian state today,” arguing that the group’s violent quest to topple the government and impose an Islamic caliphate is at the heart of Nigeria’s current instability.
“Any attempt to resolve Nigeria’s security breakdown that does not prioritize the decisive degradation of Boko Haram,” he warned, “is a non-starter.”
U.S. Pressure Spurring Action in Abuja
Obadare told lawmakers that recent shifts in Nigeria’s security strategy—the intensification of airstrikes, the recruitment of 30,000 new police officers, and the declaration of a nationwide security emergency—were triggered by increased international pressure.
“Since Nigeria’s redesignation as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) and President Trump’s threat of unilateral military action against Boko Haram, the Nigerian government has taken steps it had long resisted,” he said. “These actions show that the authorities are not impervious to incentives.”
Congress Intensifies Scrutiny After Christian Killings
The briefing follows former President Donald Trump’s October 31 directive ordering the House Appropriations Committee to investigate the recent killings of Christians in Nigeria and produce detailed recommendations for the White House.
The session was led by House Appropriations Vice Chair and National Security Subcommittee Chairman Mario Díaz-Balart, alongside Representatives Robert Aderholt, Riley Moore, Brian Mast, and Chris Smith.
Experts in foreign affairs and religious freedom—including Obadare, Vicky Hartzler of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and Sean Nelson of ADF International—provided updates and proposed policy options.
The committee is now drafting a comprehensive report for the President, outlining how Congress can help curb religious persecution and support Nigeria’s efforts to restore nationwide security.
