The Federal Government insists the claims of Christian genocide are “misleading” and “based on faulty data”. United States Senator, Ted Cruz, had claimed Christians were being targeted for attacks in the country by armed Islamic gangs.

This prompted members of the US Congress to appeal to President Bola Tinubu to take action. They also urged Secretary of State, Marco Rubio to take diplomatic action against the Nigerian government over “systematic persecution and slaughter of Christians”.

However, speaking in an interview with CNN on Tuesday night, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, dismissed the claims as “misleading and not reflective of the country’s complex security realities”.

According to him, although there are attacks on Christians, they are not targeting one religion. His comments were contained in a statement by his media office yesterday. Idris said: “Some of the claims made by officials of the United States are based on faulty data and the assumption that victims of violence are largely Christians.

“Yes, there are Christians being attacked, but these criminals do not target one religion—they attack both Christians and Muslims, especially in the northern part of the country.” The minister insisted that Nigeria remains a highly tolerant country with respect to freedom of religion.

Idris, who acknowledged the security challenges facing Nigeria, said the government is tackling them decisively through renewed focus and sustained commitment.

He said: “Yes, we have security challenges, but there is a massive government effort to ensure Nigeria becomes safe for everyone.” According to him, Nigeria has been grappling with security issues since 2009, but in the last two years, there has been renewed determination to eliminate such threats.