US House approves amendment to withhold all aid to Nigeria

THE United States House of Representatives has approved an amendment seeking to withhold 100 per cent of U.S. assistance to Nigeria until the government takes effective steps to stop the “slaughter of Christians” and other religious minorities.

The amendment, sponsored by Republican Congressman Greg Steube, raises the proposed aid withholding threshold from 50 per cent to 100 per cent, arguing that Nigeria failed to adequately protect its citizens from religious violence and terrorism.

Announcing the development on his X account, Steube said the amendment had passed. He wrote: “My amendment to withhold 100% of U.S. aid to Nigeria until its government stops the slaughter of Christians has passed.”

In a brief video posted by the lawmaker on X, he argued that withholding only half of the funding would amount to rewarding the Nigerian government despite what he described as its failure to fulfil its constitutional responsibility to protect citizens.

“I rise in strong support for my amendment to increase the withholding threshold for assistance to Nigeria from 50 percent to 100 percent. While keeping in place benchmarks that demand Nigeria take effective steps to address the violence and persecution that continue to devastate the country,” Steube said.

According to the lawmaker, Nigeria has experienced years of violence against Christians and other religious minorities, accusing the government of failing to confront the crisis.

Steube maintained that if the conditions attached to U.S. assistance were significant enough to justify withholding half of the funding, they should warrant suspending all assistance until measurable progress is made.

He also argued that it was inappropriate to continue funding Nigeria at a time when the US national debt is approaching $40 trillion.

Background

The latest move represents the culmination of months of growing pressure from U.S. lawmakers over Nigeria’s worsening insecurity, particularly persistent attacks on Christian communities by terrorist groups and armed criminal gangs.

In April 2026, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee advanced a foreign operations appropriations bill proposing that 50 per cent of U.S. assistance to Nigeria be withheld until the U.S. Secretary of State certifies that the Nigerian government is taking effective steps to prevent and respond to violence, prosecute perpetrators and support victims.

Under the proposal, the Nigerian government would have to demonstrate that it is preventing and responding to violent attacks, holding perpetrators accountable, prioritising assistance for victims and internally displaced persons, facilitating the safe return and reconstruction of affected communities, and allocating sufficient resources to tackle the violence before the withheld funds could be released.

Although the legislation did not specify the amount earmarked for Nigeria, it formed part of the broader U.S. foreign operations appropriations package for the 2027 fiscal year, which proposed $6.89 billion for national security investment programmes globally, including Africa, $205 million for democracy programmes, $5 billion for international humanitarian assistance and $870 million for anti-terrorism initiatives.

At the time, Republican Congressman Riley Moore accused President Bola Tinubu’s administration of spending millions of dollars lobbying the U.S. Congress while allegedly failing to adequately address what he described as the persecution of Christians in Nigeria.

Meanwhile, the congressional action also comes amid a period of unprecedented military and strategic cooperation between Nigeria and the United States following Washington’s designation of ISIS-linked groups operating in Nigeria as a priority security threat and the subsequent expansion of joint counterterrorism operations.

Since late 2025, both countries have strengthened intelligence sharing, military coordination and joint air operations targeting ISIS and ISWAP fighters across Nigeria’s North-East and North-West.

In December 2025, the United States launched a series of air strikes against ISIS targets in Sokoto State, marking one of its most direct military interventions against extremist groups operating in Nigeria.

Joint operations intensified in 2026. In May, the Nigerian Defence Headquarters announced that more than 20 ISIS/ISWAP fighters were killed during coordinated U.S.-Nigeria air strikes in Metele, Borno State.

Later that month, the United States announced the killing of Abu-Bilal Al-Minuki, described as ISIS’s second-in-command and one of the group’s most senior leaders allegedly responsible for orchestrating attacks against Christians in Nigeria.

Trump claims US strikes ‘largely ended’ slaughter of Christians in Nigeria

Meanwhile, speaking in Washington in June, Trump had claimed that U.S. military strikes had “largely ended the slaughter of great Christian populations” in Nigeria.

The US president said American forces eliminated senior terrorist leaders and significantly weakened extremist groups responsible for attacks on civilians.

“As you know, we recently struck Nigeria and largely ended the slaughter of great Christian populations,” he said.