Nigerian security agencies have confirmed receiving intelligence about alleged plans by terrorists to launch coordinated attacks on Christian communities in northern Nigeria on Christmas Day, following warnings from a United States-based humanitarian organization.
Equipping The Persecuted, a US-based NGO, raised the alarm during a roundtable meeting in Washington DC on Wednesday, with its founder Judd Saul claiming that terrorists are regrouping along strategic border areas in preparation for the attacks.
The meeting, which was convened by the International Committee on Nigeria and the African Jewish Alliance and chaired by former US Congressman Frank Wolf, brought together senior American lawmakers and Nigerian representatives to discuss the security threat.
Saul identified specific locations where forces were allegedly gathering and potential target communities for the planned Christmas Day assault. “They are gathering forces around the Plateau and Nasarawa border, along the Nasarawa-Benue border and along the Nasarawa-Kaduna border,” he warned. “They are planning to hit on Christmas Day in Riyom, Bokkos, Kafanchan and Agatu. We got very reliable information that they are weaponising for a Christmas Day massacre.”
He appealed to both the Nigerian government and US President Donald Trump to take immediate action, stating, “I am imploring the Nigerian government and President Donald Trump to do something so we don’t have a bunch of dead Christians in Nigeria.”
The high-level meeting was attended by Congressmen Riley Moore and Chris Smith, Senator James Lankford, members of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, and a Nigerian delegation. According to sources, Saul has already transmitted the intelligence to the US government through Congressman Moore, who is expected to brief President Trump.
A source familiar with the discussions told Saturday Punch that the American lawmakers present have extensive experience with Nigeria’s security challenges. “All the congressmen at the meeting have been to Nigeria many times. They’ve been involved in this matter since (Bill) Clinton was president,” the source revealed.
The Department of State Services has confirmed it is aware of the intelligence and has begun implementing security measures. A senior DSS officer told Saturday Punch in Abuja on Friday, “The service is aware; we have the intelligence report, and we are already working on it.”
Another DSS operative emphasized that intelligence gathering has been intensified in the identified locations. “We know the trend of attacks in those areas. I was in Kaduna for over two years, and I can tell you that these people have a pattern,” the operative said. “The intelligence report by the US NGO may be correct because communities in the Middle Belt have always come under attack during festive periods. But I am sure the service would also have got wind of any planned attack by the bandits, and preventive measures would have been put in place.”
The communities mentioned in the warning have all experienced deadly violence throughout 2025. In Riyom, bandits killed at least six residents during an October 31 attack on Kwi community, while a major assault on Jebu village in Tahoss District claimed at least 32 lives, including women and children.
Bokkos and neighboring Mangu local government areas witnessed attacks between June 19 and 21, when gunmen invaded Juwan and Manja, killing approximately 13 people. Agatu in Benue State has suffered repeated violence, with 28 people killed in Edikwu Ankpali and Opaha communities on June 1, and a pastor murdered with three others kidnapped in Anwule village in November.
Last month, Chawai communities near Kafanchan in Southern Kaduna were reportedly attacked by suspected Fulani herdsmen, resulting in multiple deaths and displacement of residents.
A senior security official, speaking on condition of anonymity, assured that protective measures are being taken. “We will intensify surveillance for early warning and continue to deepen our intelligence penetration. However, there is no specific detailed Intel at this end,” the official stated.
