United States lawmakers were on Tuesday pressed to demand sweeping reforms from the Nigerian government, including the abolition of Sharia law in the 12 northern states where it operates and the dismantling of the Hisbah religious police, amid escalating concerns about deepening persecution of Christians.
At a joint congressional briefing hosted by the House Appropriations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Dr. Ebenezer Obadare, Senior Fellow for Africa Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, warned that extremist groups are exploiting religious structures in northern Nigeria to entrench violence and impunity.
According to his testimony, Boko Haram, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), and radicalised Fulani militias are “weaponising Sharia-based institutions and Hisbah operatives to advance extremist ideology, enforce forced conversions, and operate unchecked in many communities.”
The Appropriations Committee, in a statement, quoted Obadare as urging Washington to adopt a two-pronged strategy: intensify collaboration with the Nigerian military to neutralise Boko Haram, and apply diplomatic pressure on President Bola Tinubu to make Sharia law unconstitutional in the northern states while disbanding the Hisbah corps enforcing Islamic codes on citizens of all faiths.
Obadare noted that Abuja has historically responded to international pressure, pointing to recent air strikes against Boko Haram, the recruitment of 30,000 extra police officers, and President Tinubu’s declaration of a national security emergency.
“As recent events have shown, the Nigerian authorities are not impervious to incentives,” he said. “Washington must keep up the pressure.”
The bipartisan briefing, chaired by Appropriations Vice Chair Mario Díaz-Balart (R-FL), featured testimonies linking state failures to what some lawmakers described as “religious cleansing” across northern Nigeria and the Middle Belt.
Witnesses cited the November abduction of pupils and teachers from St Mary’s Catholic School in Niger State, persistent blasphemy prosecutions, and recurring mass killings as evidence of a worsening crisis.
Obadare underscored the root of the turmoil, stressing that “the deadliest and most serious threat confronting the Nigerian state today is jihadist terror,” and insisted that any viable solution must prioritise dismantling Boko Haram’s military strength.
“Every proposal to solve the Nigerian crisis that does not take seriously the need to radically degrade and ultimately eliminate Boko Haram as a fighting force is a non-starter,” he said.
Comments