Nnamdi Kanu Accuses Nigerian Government of ‘Judeo-Christian Genocide’

Leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, has accused the Nigerian government of carrying out what he described as a “Judeo-Christian genocide” in the country.

In a letter addressed to former U.S. President Donald Trump, Kanu commended him for his recent remarks on the persecution of Christians in Nigeria, saying the U.S. leader had spoken the truth about ongoing attacks targeting adherents of the Judeo-Christian faith.

According to the IPOB leader, violent attacks against Christians and Jews in Nigeria are “factual, verifiable, and systematically executed” under the guise of counter-terrorism.

“You have seen the truth: Christians in Nigeria face an existential threat,” Kanu wrote. “This genocide is not confined to the North—it has metastasized into the Igbo heartland, where Judeo-Christians are being systematically exterminated.”

Kanu’s letter, dated November 6, 2025, was made public through his lawyer, Aloy Ejimakor, and addressed to Trump under the title “A Hidden Genocide Against Judeo-Christians in Eastern Nigeria.”

He alleged that the Nigerian government has failed to protect religious minorities while granting amnesty to terrorists and bandits responsible for mass killings across the country.

Kanu cited several reports, including findings by Amnesty International and Intersociety, documenting alleged massacres of unarmed civilians in the South East.
He referenced the Nkpor Biafra Heroes Day killings of May 30, 2016, and the deaths of 20 IPOB members in Port Harcourt during a pro-Trump rally on January 20, 2017.

The IPOB leader also linked the violence to what he called “state-backed militias,” accusing security forces of weaponizing insecurity to demonize IPOB.

“Since my illegal rendition, Nigeria has declared IPOB a terrorist organization despite zero evidence of violence. Orchestrated ‘unknown gunmen’ attacks are used to justify mass killings of Igbo youths,” he said.

Kanu also used the letter to revisit his ongoing detention since his extraordinary rendition from Kenya in June 2021, describing it as a violation of both Nigerian and international law.

He said the Court of Appeal in Abuja had discharged and acquitted him on October 13, 2022, ruling that his rendition was illegal, but alleged that the Nigerian government had defied court orders by keeping him in solitary confinement.

“The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention declared my continued imprisonment unlawful and politically motivated. Yet, I remain detained—over 1,500 days after my abduction,” he added.

Kanu urged the U.S. government to launch an independent investigation into what he called “state-sponsored massacres” of Judeo-Christians in Nigeria.
He appealed for Magnitsky Act sanctions against top Nigerian military and security officials allegedly implicated in human rights violations.

“Mr. President, history will judge us by what we do when genocide knocks. You have the power to stop a second Rwanda in Africa,” Kanu wrote to Trump.

He also requested U.S. and international support for a referendum on self-determination for the Igbo people, insisting that IPOB remains a non-violent movement committed to justice and faith-based freedom.