Group faults latest US report on insecurity in Nigeria
A group under the aegis of the Concerned Fulani People of Nigeria has expressed concern over recent reports by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which reportedly claimed that about 30,000 armed Fulani militants were responsible for widespread insecurity in Nigeria. In a statement signed by Ibrahim Barkindo Chubado on Thursday, the […]
A group under the aegis of the Concerned Fulani People of Nigeria has expressed concern over recent reports by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which reportedly claimed that about 30,000 armed Fulani militants were responsible for widespread insecurity in Nigeria.
In a statement signed by Ibrahim Barkindo Chubado on Thursday, the group said such claims unfairly stereotype millions of law-abiding Fulani citizens and risk worsening ethnic tensions across the country.
The group said international reports sometimes focus disproportionately on alleged Fulani-related violence while paying less attention to other armed non-state actors operating in Nigeria.
The statement said previous US reports had warned against ethnic profiling and broad generalisations capable of worsening communal tensions.
It recalled that during the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, public narratives frequently linked kidnapping, banditry and violent crimes to Fulani identity and Islam, leading to hostility against innocent Fulani communities in parts of Southern Nigeria and the North Central region.
The group alleged that several Fulani settlements were attacked, businesses destroyed and cattle killed due to retaliatory sentiments and ethnic profiling.
It said that herder-farmer conflicts were often oversimplified, despite security experts identifying factors such as land disputes, environmental pressures and local political tensions as major causes.
The group called for balanced reporting, evidence-based security assessments and responsible political rhetoric, insisting that Nigeria’s insecurity should not be reduced to any single ethnic group, religion or region.