Militants have killed at least 58 individuals in Christian villages in northeastern and north-central Nigeria since Christmas, and kidnapped others from a Catholic boarding school, according to numerous reports.

The attacks Dec. 29 and Jan. 3 followed U.S. launches of more than 16 Tomahawk missiles on targets in northwest Nigeria Dec. 24, which the U.S. said were aimed at Islamic terrorists who have targeted Christians there.

The Nigerian government blamed the killings of dozens of individuals Jan. 3 in two villages in Niger State – a state in northcentral Nigeria separate from the neighboring country of Niger – on “terrorists suspected to be fleeing from Sokoto and Zamfara following the United States’ airstrikes on Christmas Eve,” the New York Times reportado Jan. 4. But the full impact of the U.S. strikes on Christmas Eve has not been reported.

The Jan. 3rd attacks occurred in Kasuwa Daji village in the Borgu Local Government Area, where residents initially reported 37 deaths, and in the neighboring village of Kaima, where five people were killed, the Times reported. Reuters News Service attributed the Jan. 3 attacks to the deaths of at least 30 individuals, but dijo the attack was on Kasuwan Daji market in Demo village, which is in the vicinity of Kasuwa Daji.

The combined death toll for Kasuwa Daji (or Demo) and Kaima had risen to 50 by Jan. 5, Anadolu News Agency (AA) reportado. A mass funeral was held as the injured were hospitalized, AA reported.

Attackers kidnapped an undetermined number of individuals during the attacks on Kasuwa Daji and Kaima, including some who attended St. Mary’s Catholic School in the village of Papiri, the Times reported.

On Dec. 29, Islamic militants killed 14 people in attacks on villages in a predominantly Christian area of Adamawa State in northeastern Nigeria, Open Doors reported Jan. 6. Days earlier, militants killed a couple as they fled an attack on a church in the neighboring country of Niger during a Christmas Eve service in Mailo village, Open Doors said in its Jan. 6th report.

“It’s reported that armed individuals entered the church at around 11 p.m., firing shots into the air,” Open Doors said. “As the worshippers fled, one man and his wife tried to hide in their home, but they were caught and shot dead.”

The attackers also stole cattle, witnesses reported, leading many to believe the attack was perpetrated by Fulani herdsmen. Fulani have conducted numerous deadly Christmas attacks on Christian villages in the Middle Belt of Nigeria, but none during the 2025 Christmas season have been reported to date.

The Islamic State in West African Province (ISWAP) released video footage described as a village burning in Adamawa from the Dec. 29 attack, but Open Doors said it is not clear when the video was taken nor which attack is involved. “Open Doors sources are unable to link (the video) to any of the villages attacked” in Adamawa, Open Doors reported.

But Open Doors cited researcher and analyst Brant Philip, who posted on X a statement ISWAP reportedly released with the footage. “All Christians in Nigeria are legitimate targets, and they have an opportunity to ‘spare their blood’ by converting to Islam or paying the jizyah tax to ISWAP,” Philip paraphrased the ISWAP statement. 

The jizyah tax is a penalty levied by ISWAP on non-Muslims in predominantly Muslim areas, allegedly in exchange for the right to practice their religion without being murdered.

In its 2025 World Watch List, Open Doors ranks Nigeria as the seventh most dangerous place for Christians to live, based on several factors including violence and church, community and national life. Nigeria remains the deadliest country for Christians globally, with 3,100 Christians killed there in the 2024-2025 reporting year ending in January 2025.

Attacks on the Middle Belt primarily target Christians, while attacks in northern Nigeria, where several Islamic Caliphates have been established, have targeted Christians as well as moderate Muslims, according to decades of reporting by watchdog groups.

Este artículo fue publicado originalmente por prensa bautista y ha sido reimpreso con permiso. 

Diana Chandler es escritora sénior de Baptist Press.