Plateau Bloodbath: US Tracking Nigeria’s ‘Terror Sponsors’

The United States has placed several unnamed Nigerian government officials in its crosshairs, accusing them of fostering an environment ripe for terrorism through policies like Sharia law in the north, Senator Ted Cruz declared on social media.

The Texas Republican’s stark warning came in response to the brutal Palm Sunday massacre on March 29 in Jos, Plateau State, where jihadist gunmen stormed the Angwan Rukuba and Gari Ya Waye communities. Attackers opened fire on Christian worshippers before hacking survivors with machetes, leaving at least 10 dead and dozens injured, according to eyewitness accounts and local reports from Premium Times and Vanguard News.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) viewed over 500,000 times, Cruz wrote: “Another slaughter of Christians in Nigeria by jihadists, this time on Palm Sunday. Nigerian government officials have created an environment in which Christians are routinely persecuted and slaughtered by imposing sharia law and looking the other way at violence. Those officials should know that the US knows who they are and has the tools to hold them accountable.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Cruz, a vocal critic of Islamist extremism and ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee, singled out Sharia implementation in 12 northern states—adopted since 1999—as a key enabler. He argued it allows terror groups like Boko Haram and Fulani militants to thrive unchecked, amid Nigeria’s long-running insurgency that has claimed over 35,000 lives since 2009, per the Council on Foreign Relations.

Echoing the sentiment, West Virginia Senator Riley Moore called the Jos killings “sickening and unacceptable.” In his own X post, Moore highlighted a pattern of holy-day attacks—Christmas 2024 aside, when he claimed U.S. deterrence under former President Trump paused assaults—and urged Abuja to bolster security for Holy Week. “If they don’t take this threat seriously… the blood of these martyrs will be on their hands, and there will be significant consequences for Nigeria’s relationship with the United States,” he warned.

Nigeria’s government has yet to respond directly to the senators’ claims. However, Information Minister Mohammed Idris expressed “deep concern” over the Plateau violence in a March 31 statement, promising investigations and justice. Security analysts note that while Sharia governs personal matters like inheritance in the north, its overlap with federal law fuels tensions, exacerbating farmer-herder clashes often framed as religious persecution.

The incident fits a grim trend: Open Doors’ 2026 World Watch List ranks Nigeria ninth for Christian persecution, with over 4,100 believers killed last year. As Easter approaches, pressure mounts on President Bola Tinubu’s administration to act, lest U.S. scrutiny escalates to sanctions or aid cuts—moves Cruz has championed before.