US President Donald Trump has ordered the preparation of plans for military action in Nigeria to tackle Islamist militant groups, accusing the government of not doing enough to halt the killing of Christians.
Trump did not say which killings he was referring to, but claims of a genocide against Nigeria's Christians have been circulating in recent weeks and months in some right-wing US circles.
Groups monitoring violence say there is no evidence to suggest that Christians are being killed more than Muslims in Nigeria, which is roughly evenly divided between followers of the two religions.
The government of Africa's most populous nation has not responded to the threat of US military action.
However, Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu insisted that there was religious tolerance in the country and said the security challenges were affecting people "across faiths and regions".
