Five Republican lawmakers in the United States have introduced a bill seeking sanctions, including visa bans and asset freezes, against some Nigerian individuals and groups over alleged religious persecution.
The proposed legislation, titled Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026, was introduced on Tuesday at the US House of Representatives. It calls on the US secretary of state to submit a comprehensive report on efforts to address what the sponsors described as ongoing religious persecution and mass atrocities in Nigeria.
If passed into law, the bill would mandate the Departments of State and Treasury to impose targeted sanctions on individuals or entities deemed responsible for severe violations of religious freedom. Those listed for possible sanctions include Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, former Kano State governor and national leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP); the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN); Miyetti Allah Kautal Hore; and groups described as Fulani-ethnic nomad militias in Nigeria.
The bill was sponsored by Chris Smith, Riley Moore (the bill’s author), Brian Mast, Mario Diaz-Balart, and Bill Huizenga.
According to a copy of the bill, the lawmakers praised former US President Donald Trump for redesignating Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC), arguing that the US should deploy “all available diplomatic, humanitarian, economic, and security tools” to pressure the Nigerian government to end impunity for perpetrators of religious violence and protect Christian communities and other targeted religious minorities.
The proposed law also requires the secretary of state to assess whether certain Fulani-ethnic militias in Nigeria qualify as foreign terrorist organisations. It further recommends that humanitarian assistance, co-funded by the Nigerian government, be delivered through trusted civil society and faith-based organisations, particularly in Nigeria’s Middle Belt.
Under the bill, the US government would be expected to impose sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act on the listed individuals and organisations or provide Congress with reasons why such sanctions were not imposed.
Riley Moore, who authored the bill, has been vocal about claims of systemic persecution of Christians in Nigeria and visited the country in November 2025 as part of his advocacy.
In November 2025, Trump redesignated Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern, a move that allows the US to apply diplomatic and economic measures. He also authorised coordinated strikes with the Nigerian government against suspected militants on Christmas Day 2025.