The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has slammed U.S. President Donald Trump over allegations of Christian genocide in Nigeria.

In a statement on its X handle on Monday, the country’s apex Islamic body said Muslims and Christians are victims of armed criminals in Nigeria.

“There is no Christian genocide in Nigeria. No Muslim genocide. No religious intolerance. The Nigerian tragedy is that of poverty, climate change, bad governance over time, and armed criminals who kill indiscriminately while a section of the world seeks to exploit the situation,” the NSCIA said.

It added, “The ‘genocide’ claim completely collapses when confronted with reality, context, and verifiable data. @ACLEDINFO report of 2022 proves conclusively that the driver of violence in Nigeria is not anti-Christian persecution, as Muslims and people of other faiths are also affected.”

The Islamic organisation further assured “genuine Christian brothers and sisters” that they’re not enemies of Islam and Muslims.

“You are not our enemies; you are our compatriots, colleagues, and neighbours,” it said. “We are both victims of a failed security architecture and a brutal criminal insurgency that targets us all. We have never denied our collective pain.”

Mr Trump had earlier threatened to deploy troops or launch air strikes in Nigeria to halt what he described as the mass killing of Christians in the country.

Asked last week Sunday if he envisioned troops on the ground or air strikes in Nigeria, Mr Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he was considering several military options to protect Christians in Nigeria.

Mr Trump’s remarks came shortly after his administration reinstated Nigeria on its Countries of Particular Concern list—a U.S. designation for nations accused of violating religious freedoms. Other countries on the list include China, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia, and Pakistan.

The Islamic group, however, said, “The U.S. government’s reimposition of the ‘Country of Particular Concern’ (CPC) designation on Nigeria is an act of political cynicism. This is the same designation placed on China and Russia. This designation of Nigeria was lifted by the previous U.S. administration in 2023 when the USA acknowledged the complex reality.

“Its re-imposition by President Trump is not based on new facts: it is a political tool, wielded by lobbyists, and it cheapens the very idea of ‘religious freedom.”’