Inserts:

00:00 Yelwata, Nigeria - June 2025
00:03 Report / Halida Abbaro & Adewole Dada
00:05 Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria - June 2022
00:36 Bokkos Plateaut State, Nigeria - December, 2023
00:41 Owo, Ondo State, Nigeria - June 2022
02:27 Yelwata, Nigeria - June 2025

Script:

+++SYN+++ 

0:01
In June this year, up to 200 people were killed when gunmen stormed a Christian farming community in Nigeria's Middle Belt...where the majority MUSLIM North meets the largely CHRISTIAN south. 

0:14
((2 seconds atmo woman wailing))

0:16
That attack came almost exactly three years after a brutal bombing and shooting at a CHURCH in the SOUTH WEST of the country left dozens of worshippers dead.  

A number of terror attacks have targetted Nigeria's CHRISTIAN community over the past few years.

Advocacy groups say the government has denied the severity of attacks on Christians...though groups monitoring violence say there is no evidence to suggest that Christians are being killed more than Muslims.

Now the United States has gone further, accusing the government in Abuja of allowing a GENOCIDE against Christians.

0:50
On Saturday President Donald Trump threatened to cut aid to Nigeria, and potentially stage a military intervention if the killings do not stop.

1:03
Nigeria's foreign ministry has strongly refuted the allegations. In a statement it said the government "would continue to defend all citizens, irrespective of race creed and religion."

1:14
Some Nigerians have WELCOMED Trump's threat of intervention.  

1:20
+++VOX POP ENGLISH F+++ 14 SECONDS ((from wires))
"So Christians are now being scared, to move about, christians are scared to worship freely. The priests, the lay leaders, the seminarians and all that. So things need to be done, it's bad."

1:35
+++VOXPOP ENGLISH F+++ ((from our correspondent)) 10 SECONDS
"We don't mind if the US army would take charge. At least peace would reign. If that would bring solution to Nigeria, then we are good to go."

1:45
Others DW spoke to, said they thought US military action could potentially stoke MORE ethnic tensions.  

1:55
+++VOXPOP ENGLISH F+++ ((from our correspondent)) 11 SECONDS
"We've seen situations where the US  helped countries, in quotes, to solve their issues. They left it worse than it was."

2:06
+++VOXPOP ENGLISH M+++ ((from our correspondent)) 16 SECONDS
"Some Muslims are real Muslims and some are just covering up as a Muslim and they are terrorists. So what if you say you want to come over here and tackle terrorism, and at the end of the day you start attacking all Muslims." 

2:19
Nigeria's Islamist insurgency has dragged on for over 15 years. Analysts say while Christians HAVE been killed, most of the victims have been MUSLIM in the country's northeast. They also say many of the conflicts are driven by many factors other than religious hatred....such as LAND disputes between Christian farmers and Muslim herders.

ENDE 2:40