ABUJA/GUSAU, Nigeria: President Donald Trump praised Nigerian President Bola Tinubu for his actions against violence, according to a letter released by Nigeria’s presidency on Wednesday, in contrast to the US leader’s threats late last year over treatment of that country’s Christians.
Trump said he appreciated Tinubu’s “decisive leadership on behalf of the Nigerian people” and applauded his efforts to address “the violence affecting Christian communities,” according to the letter, which was dated July 6.
“It is a true honor to stand with you in the fight against terrorists and to make the Federal Republic of Nigeria stronger and more prosperous,” Trump wrote.
The letter signals a warming of ties between Abuja and Washington since Trump last November accused the government of failing to protect Christians from extremist violence and threatened to cut aid to Nigeria and take possible military action. Nigeria rejected the allegations, saying insecurity affected citizens of all faiths.
According to the Nigerian presidency, the two countries established a joint security working group last year to expand intelligence sharing, training, and operations against militant groups. The letter was released days after US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Frank Garcia visited Abuja for talks on strengthening security cooperation.
The praise came the same day gunmen killed more than 20 people in villages in Nigeria’s northwestern Zamfara state, officials told AFP, the latest violence blamed on gangs that have terrorized the region for years.
The attacks underscore the persistent insecurity gripping northwestern and central Nigeria, where heavily armed gangs known locally as “bandits” raid villages, steal livestock, kidnap residents for ransom and carry out deadly assaults.
The bandits killed 21 people when they opened fire at around 3:00 p.m. (1400 GMT), Nasiru Lauwali, a councillor representing the Sauna district in Talata Mafara local government area, told AFP. Sauna district secretary AlHajji Shehu Garba said the attacks struck five villages and put the death toll at 23, most of them farmers.
Three others wounded by gunfire were taken to Talata Mafara General Hospital and later transferred to the teaching hospital in neighboring Sokoto state, Garba added. Police did not immediately respond to AFP requests for comment.
Violence by criminal gangs in northwestern and central Nigeria remains one of a string of security challenges facing the country’s authorities, who are also battling a long-running jihadist insurgency in the northeast and separatist unrest elsewhere. While the gangs are largely motivated by financial gain and do not publicly espouse an ideology, authorities and security analysts have expressed concern over growing ties between some bandit groups and jihadist militants.
