A senior United States congressman has called on the Nigerian government to immediately strengthen security for Christian communities, following a deadly attack on Palm Sunday that left at least 20 people dead in Plateau State as Christians across the country begin marking Easter Sunday.
Representative Chris Smith, a Republican from New Jersey and Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee, issued the statement on April 1 in direct response to the killings in the Jos North area of the state. “I urge the Government of Nigeria to take immediate and concrete steps to ensure the safety and security of all Christian communities in the country. This includes deploying adequate security forces and holding perpetrators to account,” Smith said.
The attack took place on the evening of March 29, 2026, when gunmen on motorcycles opened fire on residents of Angwan Rukuba and surrounding communities in Jos North Local Government Area. Witnesses described armed men shooting sporadically into the area as people gathered on the streets. Plateau State Governor Caleb Mutfwang condemned the violence and imposed a 48-hour curfew in parts of northern Jos. At the time of Smith’s statement, no group had claimed responsibility and authorities had not publicly identified the attackers.
The death toll from the attack, initially reported at 20 by the state commissioner for information, was later revised upward by other accounts as additional victims were confirmed. Separate Palm Sunday attacks in Eto Baba and Kaduna State brought the combined toll from the day’s violence to at least 53, according to International Christian Concern (ICC), a religious freedom advocacy organisation.
Smith expressed particular alarm at what he described as a recurring pattern, noting that similar violence struck Plateau State on Palm Sunday in 2025, when at least 54 Christians were killed. “The fact that such atrocities are repeated year after year, on the same holy day, underscores the urgent need for decisive action,” he said. The congressman stated that the Nigerian government has both a fundamental responsibility and a constitutional duty to protect all citizens regardless of their faith, and warned that persistent failure to do so threatens religious coexistence in the region.
The Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), through its President Archbishop Daniel Okoh, also condemned the killings, calling the targeting of worshippers during Holy Week a grave injustice. Okoh noted that attackers had reportedly worn uniforms similar to those of Nigerian security forces, which he described as particularly alarming and demanded thorough investigation.
Smith closed his statement with a call for US solidarity with victims of religious violence in Nigeria and urged Nigerian authorities to act before Easter Sunday was marked by further tragedy. His remarks came amid broader US congressional attention to violence against Christians in Nigeria, with Smith and other lawmakers having recently introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026, which would require the US Secretary of State to report on Nigeria’s prosecution of perpetrators of religious violence.
