Judd Saul: 5-10,000 Christians Killed in Nigeria Each Year, 800 Villages Wiped From the Earth

For Judd Saul, the crisis unfolding in Nigeria is not simply another international conflict. It is, in his view, one of the greatest humanitarian and religious tragedies of the modern era, and one that has failed to receive the attention it deserves.

Saul, founder of Equipping the Persecuted and executive editor of Truth Nigeria, says the world has largely ignored what he believes is a sustained campaign of violence against Christian communities. In his interview, “35 Christians Are Killed a Day: Inside Jihadi Violence in Nigeria,“ he tells us that 5,000 and 10,000 Christians are killed in Nigeria each year in direct attacks, 800 Christian villages have disappeared over the past three decades after repeated assaults left communities destroyed or abandoned.

These numbers represent far more than statistics. They represent fathers murdered while defending their families, mothers burned out of their homes, children left orphaned, churches reduced to ashes, and generations of Christian communities erased from the places they had called home for centuries.

Saul identifies Fulani Islamist militias as the primary perpetrators of the attacks in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. These armed groups seek far more than land or cattle grazing rights.

These militias pursue the establishment of an Islamic caliphate and attacks on Christian communities are part of that broader ideological objective. The violence should therefore be understood not as isolated criminal incidents but as religious persecution carried out by militants pursuing political and religious domination.

In short: genocide.

A Humanitarian Disaster

Millions of people have suffered consequences extending well beyond those killed in attacks. Five million Christians have been displaced from their homes, many now living in internally displaced persons camps where food shortages, disease, and uncertainty have become daily realities. Families escape with nothing but the clothes they were wearing and are never able to return home.

Te humanitarian cost is impossible to measure simply by counting fatalities because entire communities lose their homes, livelihoods, churches, schools, and histories.

The Devastation of Villages

Saul describes a pattern utter brutality that has repeated itself across hundreds of Christian communities.

Militants attack villages with overwhelming force, setting homes ablaze and reducing entire communities to rubble. He says food supplies are deliberately contaminated with petrol before being burned, ensuring survivors cannot simply rebuild after the attackers leave. Churches, schools, businesses, and farms are destroyed, leaving little behind except ashes.

For those fortunate enough to escape, Saul says survival often means becoming refugees inside their own country.

The objective is not merely to win a battle but to permanently remove Christian communities from territories they have occupied for generations.

Apathy in the International Press

Saul is equally outspoken about what he sees as failures in international reporting.

He argues that attacks are too often attributed to “unknown gunmen”. That language obscures the identities of the attackers as Fulani Islamic Militia and minimizes the suffering experienced by Christian victims.

Perhaps the most ridiculous justification from the West is the notion that “climate change” is responsible for the violence – from such notable sources as the Biden Administration. Saul laughs this off, but such ignorant claims interfere with the message that this is Islamic extremist terrorism and a strong attempt at genocide.

The New York Times, of course, has reported that the conflict involves multiple factors and that people of different faiths have also been victims of violence, a characterization that Saul and other advocates strongly dispute. Their lack of focus in the face of clear facts is typical in today’s media, at best disappointing and at worst tragic in lack of loyalty to its own mission.

A Mission to Remember the Victims

Saul’s response has not been limited to speaking publicly. Through Equipping the Persecuted, he says his organization provides emergency aid, supports displaced families, and works to keep the stories of victims from being forgotten.

That mission was symbolized by the unveiling of a memorial in Benue State honoring Christians killed during attacks. Speaking at the ceremony, Saul said, “Their names are now engraved in stone so they will never be forgotten. This monument stands as a testament to their lives, their faith, and our commitment to ensure the world remembers what happened. The persecution of our brothers and sisters in Christ must stop.”

For Saul, the greatest injustice is not only the violence itself but what he views as the world’s apathy. His message is that behind every village destroyed and every statistic reported are individual families whose lives have been permanently changed, and he believes the international community should pay far greater attention to their suffering and the ongoing humanitarian crisis they face.