US Congressman Riley Moore has claimed that Fulani militants killed more people in Nigeria over the past year than Boko Haram or ISIS. Moore made the statement in a post on his verified X account on Saturday, referencing a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. The USCIRF report noted that approximately 30,000 armed Fulani militants are operating across Nigeria. It also stated that these militants are driving insecurity and religious freedom violations in various parts of the country.
Moore said the findings confirm a report he and Mario DB previously submitted to former President Donald Trump. He described the violence as a "horrific truth" and claimed innocent Christians are the primary victims. According to Moore, the Trump administration recognized the threat and included it in its Counterterrorism Strategy. He emphasized that the United States, as a Christian nation, must support persecuted Christians and hold the militants accountable.
The USCIRF report did not provide a direct comparison of annual death tolls between Fulani militants and Boko Haram. Moore's claim relies on the commission's assessment of the scale and impact of violence by armed Fulani groups. No specific figures for deaths caused by either group were cited in the source. The report focused on the presence of 30,000 armed Fulani militants and their role in escalating violence.
Riley Moore asserts Fulani militants killed more people than Boko Haram last year, yet the source provides no death tolls to verify this. He singles out Christians as primary victims, though the USCIRF report does not quantify religious targeting. The claim gains traction without supporting numbers, shaping perception through assertion rather than data. This risks framing Nigeria's complex violence through a narrow, unverified lens.
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