U.S. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) has introduced legislation designed to protect Christians and other religious minorities from widespread persecution in Nigeria.
Cruz introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act of 2025 as a way to hold government officials in the West African country accountable. According to a news release, Cruz claims that government leaders are enabling Islamist jihadist violence and enforcing harsh blasphemy laws, which have led to the death and imprisonment of innocent citizens.
“It is long past time to impose real costs on the Nigerian officials who facilitate these activities, and my Nigeria Religious Freedom Accountability Act uses new and existing tools to do exactly that,” Cruz said in a statement, urging his colleagues to advance what he calls “critical legislation.”
Religious persecution is not new in Nigeria, but since 2009 it has reached unprecedented levels. According to Persecution.org, extremist groups and armed militias have killed more than 52,000 Christians across the country. More than 20,000 churches, seminaries, and Christian-based institutions have been destroyed.
In a recent attack, more than 200 Christians were killed in a single night of carnage on 13 June by Fulani jihadists in north-central Nigeria. As of now, a dozen states in Nigeria enforce Sharia law, which includes blasphemy provisions and emboldens vigilante groups to punish people without due process. The laws disproportionately impact Christians and moderate Muslims who have spoken out against radical teachings.
As of 2023, at least 31 people have been arrested on blasphemy charges. Many of them remain in prolonged detention without a fair trial.
Cruz’s legislation would impose targeted sanctions, including additional travel bans and asset freezes for officials the U.S. suspects of facilitating violence and the repressive blasphemy laws. The bill would also require the U.S. Secretary of State to redesignate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) under the International Religious Freedom Act.