Latest Kaduna Abductions: US Urges Nigeria To Intensify Protection Of Christians

US Under Secretary for Political Affairs Allison Hooker, spoke Thursday during a high- level meeting of US–Nigeria Working Group in Abuja, adding that although some progress had been made in recent months, recent attacks indicated that Nigeria must do more to guarantee the safety of Christians. 

The US spoke against the backdrop of last Sunday's abduction of 177 Christian worshippers in Kajuru, Southern Kaduna, in the northwestern part of the country.
Hooker's words, “Today, we are here to discuss how we can work together to deter violence against Christian communities, prioritising counterterrorism and insecurity; investigating attacks and holding perpetrators accountable; and reducing the number of killings, forced displacements, and abductions of Christians, particularly in the North-Central states.

“With respect to the protection of Christians, the Nigerian government recently secured the release of 38 Christians abducted from a church in Kwara State, and another 265 abducted from St. Mary’s Catholic School. This real progress is a direct result of our engagement with the Nigerian government and our partnership.
“We are, however, concerned about recent reports that gunmen kidnapped more than 170 Christians in Kaduna State on January 18. We want to see an end to this type of violence. And we are here to work with the Nigerian government with the goal of protecting Christians and their right to practise their faith freely and safely.
“We call for the government to work with the local authorities to find and secure the release of the innocent victims and to work with NGOs to meet the victims’ families’ needs in the meantime.”  
She further added that advancing religious freedom and security would deepen U.S.–Nigeria relations in other areas, including trade, economic cooperation, health responses, and the fight against terrorism, while also supporting the return of internally displaced persons to their communities.
The high-level meeting, was attended by senior US and Nigerian government officials.
According to her, advancing religious freedom and security would help the United States and Nigeria enhance the reciprocal benefits of their relationship, “solidifying trade and economic deals, degrading terrorist groups that threaten our interests, and strengthening health responses, among many other areas.
“We also hope to identify ways to return internally displaced persons to the communities from which they were expelled in the North-Central states, interdict weapons and funding going to terrorist groups, expand investigations, and ensure the prosecution of individuals and groups committing atrocities.” 

‘Protection Of All Citizens Non-Negotiable’

In his response, the National Security Adviser, NSA, Nuhu Ribadu, said Nigeria, had taken deliberate and decisive steps to confront insecurity, with intensified joint operations, and sustained deployment of security forces to priority locations, particularly those communities experiencing recurrent attacks on civilians and religious groups.
“These directives have been matched with concrete action. Nigeria is expanding early-warning and rapid-response mechanisms, developing a national database to serve as a single, authoritative source of accurate and verifiable data on deaths and casualties arising from violence.
“This effort will strengthen evidence-based decision-making, accountability, and the effectiveness of security responses,” Ribadu said, pointing out  that investigations and prosecutions related to attacks on religious communities had been intensified to ensure that violence is met not only with force, but with justice and accountability.
His words, “Nigeria is a deeply plural society, and the protection of all citizens—Christians, Muslims, and those of other beliefs—is non-negotiable. Violence framed along religious lines is treated as an attack on the Nigerian state itself.
“Our response, therefore, integrates security operations, the rule of law, humanitarian safeguards, and strategic communication, ensuring that operational successes translate into public confidence and strengthened social cohesion." 

US-Nigeria Partnership ‘Working’

Ribadu further noted that the partnership between Nigeria and the US was working, saying it was important that progress be measured not by isolated incidents within a complex security environment, but rather on the overall direction of travel, the decisions taken at the highest level of government, and the institutional capacity being built to prevent, respond to, and punish violence wherever it occurred.
According to him, “Nigeria believes this is the most responsible and credible basis for partnership and evaluation.
“We also recognise that our partnership with the United States extends well beyond security cooperation. It encompasses democratic resilience, respect for the rule of law, regional stability in West Africa and a shared determination to prevent extremist and malign actors from exploiting governance gaps or social fractures,” he added.
Meanwhile, the Northern chapter of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, has lampooned the police over its poor handling of the January 18, 2026, abduction of 177 Christian worshippers in Kajuru Local Government Area of Kaduna State, rebuking security agencies for dismissing the reports initially.
Days after initially denying the incident, the police confirmed the attack and abductions, thus angering some stakeholders, including the CAN. 
Chairman of the CAN in the 19 states of the north and Abuja,  Rev Joseph Hayab, who spoke on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily on Wednesday, said, “The manner [in which] the police commissioner and other security agencies came out to outrightly say that this thing did not happen to me, it’s a total disappointment, a total failure, and it’s just increased the lack of trust that exists between the people and those who are securing them.” 
The Kaduna State government, alongside the security agencies initially denied the abduction on Monday, but the police later reversed their position on Wednesday, confirming that the worshippers were indeed abducted, thus 
heightening concerns over religious violence in the country.