AU chair dismisses claims of Christian genocide in Nigeria, says ‘Muslims were first victims of Boko Haram’

The chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, Mahmoud Youssouf, has said there are no targeted Christian killings in northern Nigeria.

Speaking with reporters at the United Nations in New York, Youssouf said the complexity of the security situation in northern Nigeria cannot be described as Christian genocide.

He said: “There is no genocide in northern Nigeria.”

“The complexity of the situation in northern Nigeria should push us to think twice before making such statements,” he added.

Youssouf said, “The first victims of Boko Haram (the most prominent jihadist group in the region) are Muslims, not Christians.”

Recently, claims of Christian genocide in Nigeria have been peddled on conventional and social media, especially by some high-profile political personalities in the United States.

Following the claims, some US lawmakers asked Marco Rubio, Secretary of State, to immediately take decisive diplomatic action against the Nigerian government over the “systematic persecution and slaughter of Christians” in the country.

Subsequently, US President Donald Trump labelled Nigeria a “country of particular concern (CPC)” over claims of Christian persecution in the West African country.

The US leader also warned the Nigerian government to “better move fast” or he would make good his threat to stop all US aid and assistance to the country.

He also threatened to unleash the Department of War on Nigeria to fight the terrorists “that attack our cherished Christians”.

The Nigerian government has repeatedly rejected the claims of Christian persecution.

However, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) has insisted that Christian communities have repeatedly suffered brutal attacks.