By Semafor Africa
Photos: YouTube Screenshots\Wikimedia Commons
Nigeria’s foreign minister rejected accusations from top US politicians that Abuja was “facilitating” violent attacks against Christians, a row that threatens to jeopardize relations with Washington.
Yusuf Tuggar told Semafor that resource-based tensions in some communities in the country had been distorted by interest groups to suit narratives of religious persecution.
Tuggar said the comments were the latest attempt in recent years by “certain groups, including opposition groups within Nigeria” to use false premises of persecution in order to put the nation on Washington’s annual list of countries of particular concern over religious freedoms.
“Lobby groups and even comedians — and they are comedians, we must not forget — are revving up these sentiments,” he said. The foreign minister reiterated points made in recent rebuttals by other Nigerian government officials, including that the country has no state religion and is not allowing attacks against Christians. He said recent communal conflicts were linked to pressures on resources, with Nigeria’s population projected to nearly double in coming decades amid growing pressure from the worsening impact of climate change.
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