The International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law estimates that more than 60,000 killings have taken place since 2010, with Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa (ISWAP) terrorising communities. It cites reports by the International Committee on Nigeria (Icon), reporting that 43,242 Nigerians have been killed by Boko Haram since 2010. Additionally, in the same time, extremists among the nomadic Fulani population are recorded to have killed 17,284 more Nigerians.
The group warns: “From the way things are speedily unfolding, the country is likely to be thrown into the Rwandan style genocide and other forms of mass bloodletting.”
The prominent French writer and author Bernard-Henri Lévy visited Nigeria last year and warned there was a “slow-motion war” going on. He said the world had “hardly noticed” a “massacre of Christians, massive in scale and horrific in brutality”.
His reportage is among the facts submitted to an investigation by the House of Lords.
PSJ UK, a humanitarian group with offices in Nigeria, has received evidence of 900 churches being bombed and targeted by Boko Haram between 2009 and 2017. Terrorism now spreads through Mali , Niger and Burkina Faso.
PSJ UK chief executive Ayo Adedoyin said: “[Our] campaign builds on the Prime Minister’s Christmas message, which vowed to defend persecuted Christians around the world… For too long, Nigeria’s Christians have been silently slaughtered.
“Their cries have been ignored by the mainstream media and political establishment, both in Nigeria and across the western world. There will be no peace in Africa until Nigeria, the continent’s largest economy and breadbasket of the future, can defend each of its citizens, particularly the most vulnerable.
“While we cannot underestimate the threat of Covid-19, it is undeniable that Islamic terrorism has posed a bigger threat to Nigerian society at the start of 2020. As ISWAP expands and targets farmers, the risk of food shortages for Nigeria’s poorest is high, and must be remedied to avoid civil disorder.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “We condemn the violence perpetrated by Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa and the intercommunal fighting which has caused immense suffering for Christian and Muslim communities in Nigeria. We are committed to supporting Nigeria to fight extremism and protect the constitutional right to freedom of religion.”
The British government calls “jihadist terrorist groups” Boko Haram and its breakaway branch, Islamic State of West Africa. While there has been a recent increase in targeting Christians, according to her analysis, the majority of victims were Muslim.
In January, Boris Johnson spoke with President Buhari about British funding to combat terrorism in Nigeria. Britain has offered a ‘substantial package’ of assistance for defense, humanitarian aid and stabilization.
