The newly elected Chair of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, Asif Mahmood, has named Nigeria as his top priority and expressed concern over persistent attacks on religious communities in the country.
Mahmood disclosed this in an interview with OSV News, stating that the situation in Nigeria remained a major concern for the independent and bipartisan US federal government commission that monitors religious freedom worldwide.
Mahmood said, “My top priority is going to be — if you ask me, ‘pick one place’ — it’ll be Nigeria.”
As sighted by Sunday PUNCH, Mahmood said the commission was concerned about violence linked to Islamic extremist groups, including Boko Haram, while noting that Muslim communities had also been seriously affected by the violence.
Violence and displacement arising from disputes between farmers and herders have also contributed to insecurity in several parts of the country.
