Five United States lawmakers have proposed a bill aimed at imposing visa restrictions and asset freezes on former Kano State Governor Rabiu Kwankwaso, the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association, and two other individuals over alleged serious violations of religious freedom, including the persecution of Christians in Nigeria.
The proposed legislation, titled the ‘Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026’, was introduced by Chris Smith, Riley Moore, Brian Mast, Mario Diaz-Balart, and Bill Huizenga and would require the Secretary of State to submit periodic assessments to Congress detailing Nigeria’s compliance with international religious freedom obligations and actions taken to protect vulnerable communities.
If enacted, the measure would also compel U.S. authorities to consider targeted sanctions, humanitarian assistance, and security cooperation frameworks aimed at ending impunity for perpetrators of religious violence and strengthening protections for affected populations.
The lawmakers cited estimates that between 50,000 and 125,000 Christians were killed between 2009 and 2025, with more than 19,000 churches destroyed. They also referenced attacks in Yelwata, the Christmas Eve massacres of 2023 and 2024, and the Holy Week and Easter attacks of 2024 and 2025, which they said left more than 9,500 people, mostly Christians, dead and displaced over half a million others. According to Open Doors’ 2026 Watch List, Nigeria accounts for 72 per cent of Christians killed worldwide.
The sponsors further highlighted cases such as Rhoda Jatau and Deborah Yakubu, who suffered mob violence, imprisonment or death over alleged blasphemy, while perpetrators were rarely punished.
They said U.S. President Donald Trump “acted justly” by redesignating Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), arguing that the Nigerian government has historically failed to adequately prevent or respond to religiously motivated violence and has tolerated impunity by extremist actors.
Under the bill, the Secretary of State would also determine whether certain Fulani-ethnic militias in Nigeria qualify for designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation, while the Departments of State and Treasury would be expected to impose Global Magnitsky sanctions on individuals or entities responsible for severe religious freedom violations.
The bill partly reads, “The United States should deliver humanitarian assistance, co-funded by the Government of Nigeria, through trusted civil society organisations, including faith-based organisations, in Nigeria’s middle belt states,” part of the bill reads.
“The Department of State and the Department of the Treasury should impose targeted sanctions, including visa bans and asset freezes under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, on individuals or entities responsible for severe religious freedom violations, or report to Congress the reasons such sanctions have not been imposed, including—
“(A) Fulani-ethnic nomad militias in Nigeria;
“(B) Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, former Kano State Governor;
‘(C) Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN); and
“(D) Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore.”
The legislation also proposes US humanitarian assistance, co-funded by the Nigerian government, through trusted civil society and faith-based organisations in the Middle Belt, and calls for collaboration with international partners such as France, Hungary and the United Kingdom to promote religious freedom and peace.
Lawmakers added that future US–Nigeria relations would depend on the Nigerian government’s response to the alleged atrocities, noting that Nigeria could play a stabilising role in the Sahel and strengthen ties with Washington if it takes concrete steps to combat persecution and protect vulnerable communities.
