Christian women face serious atrocities in Nigeria, UN group warns

In a statement released on June 8, experts stated that the situation is “deeply worrying”particularly in northern Nigeria and the Middle Belt region. There, a deteriorating security situation and an inadequate response from civil authorities have allowed armed extremist groups – which include Boko Haram and the Islamic State’s West Africa Province, as well as radicalized Muslim pastors – to operate with relative impunity.

UN professionals pointed out as contributing factors to the scenario: the role of local interpretations of Islamic law (Sharia) in 12 northern states, blasphemy codes and systemic failures in access to civil justice.

“Violence against Christians and other religious minorities remains rampant. (…) The testimonies we have received paint a horrifying picture of fear, trauma, coercion and abandonment. Victims and survivors cannot be left without protection, justice and reparations, including rehabilitation and meaningful support,” said one of the United Nations officials.

Persecution of Christians in Nigeria leads UN to demand urgent measures

In Monday’s statement, Giorgio Mazzoli, director of UN advocacy at the religious freedom organization Alliance for Freedom International (ADF), said that “Christians, particularly women and girls, among other religious minorities, have faced serious and systematic atrocities at the hands of armed militant groups operating with impunity in parts of Nigeria.”

ADF International was one of several human rights organizations that pressured the US State Department to redesignate Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” in the fall of 2025.

“For too long, the international community has remained largely silent as this crisis has deepened. The joint communication from five UN mechanisms is a significant and welcome step towards ensuring that these violations receive international attention and that their root causes – including discriminatory legal frameworks – are fully addressed,” continued Mazzoli.

The statement was issued by a team of experts made up of UN special rapporteurs and a working group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances.

Special rapporteurs include Reem Alsalem, special rapporteur on violence against women and girls, Morris Tidball-Binz, special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Nicolas Levrat, special rapporteur on minority issues, and Alice Jill Edwards, special rapporteur on torture.

The team also consists of Gabriella Citroni, Grażyna Baranowska, Aua Baldé, Ana Lorena Delgadillo Pérez and Mohamed Al Obaidi.

Experts called on Nigerian authorities to take urgent action to protect at-risk populations, secure the release of abducted people, conduct independent investigations, prosecute perpetrators and provide justice, reparations and support to victims.

“Impunity for these crimes only fuels more violence,” they warned. “Nigerian authorities must act urgently to prevent further irreparable harm and ensure accountability for all violations.”

Women hide their faith to survive: UN denounces violence against Christians in Nigeria

In a formal communication sent to the Nigerian government, UN experts cited specific incidents, such as:

• the kidnapping of girls taken from a church in Borno state;
• the forced conversion and marriage of a 13-year-old girl in Bauchi State;
• heinous attack on a 16-year-old Christian girl whose hand was allegedly cut off by militants after her family rejected a forced marriage proposal.

These cases are part of a “broader pattern of violence” against Christian communities, “including murders, attacks on churches and villages, mass displacement, mob violence linked to accusations of blasphemy, and serious insecurity affecting women and children in internally displaced people’s camps.”

Women and girls in displacement camps face particular vulnerability to sexual exploitation. Some of them were coerced into sexual acts in exchange for food or help. Many reportedly hide their Christian identity or wear hijabs to survive.

“If confirmed, these allegations could amount to serious violations of international human rights law, including violations of the rights to life, security, liberty, security, freedom of religion or belief, freedom from torture, enforced disappearance, slavery and trafficking, and the rights of women and children.”

©2026 Catholic News Agency. Published with permission. Original in English: UN experts warn of ‘deeply troubling’ rights violations against Christian women and girls in Nigeria https://www.ewtnnews.com/world/africa/un-experts-warn-of-deeply-troubling-rights-violations-against-christian-women-and-girls-in