▸ Key Takeaways
- An estimated 35 Christians are killed every day in Nigeria, according to our guests—and they warn the actual number may be even higher because many killings go unreported.
- More than 10,000 churches have been destroyed and 800 Christian communities wiped off the map amid years of extremist violence.
- More than 5,000 Christians a year have been killed during the past decade.
- Nigerian Christian survivor Frank Utoo gives powerful firsthand testimony about the murder of relatives, friends, and members of his community.
- Frank says approximately half of the childhood friends he grew up with are now gone, victims of the violence devastating Christian communities.
- Judd Saul, executive director of Equipping the Persecuted, has worked in Nigeria since 2011. His organization says it has helped more than 500,000 persecuted Christians since beginning its ministry.
- Judd says his organization has issued more than 145 terror alerts with approximately 90% accuracy, yet Nigerian authorities repeatedly failed to intervene.
- President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have brought greater U.S. attention and pressure to the persecution of Nigerian Christians, but the killing continues.
- Our guests argue that American efforts must focus not only on ISIS and Boko Haram but also on the Fulani ethnic militias operating in Nigeria’s Middle Belt, which they identify as a major source of attacks against Christian communities.
- Christians in America can help by watching and sharing this interview, praying for the persecuted church, supporting those helping victims, signing the petition, and urging U.S. leaders to continue pressing for action.
They’ll never make the evening news
No breaking news.
No national outrage.
No worldwide protests.
Yet according to those working directly with persecuted Christians in Nigeria, an estimated 17 Christians are killed every day.
Tomorrow…
Another seventeen.
The next day…
Another seventeen.
And the actual number may be even higher.
By the time you finish reading this article, another Christian family somewhere in Nigeria may already be running for its life.
Or worse.
And that raises a disturbing question:
Why isn’t more of the world talking about it?
One of the Greatest Christian Tragedies of Our Generation
Imagine waking up tomorrow morning to discover your church had been burned to the ground.
Imagine your pastor murdered.
Imagine your neighbors gone.
Imagine your children sleeping in a refugee camp because terrorists destroyed your home.
Now imagine knowing the terrorists could return tonight…
And no one may come to protect you.
For countless Christians in Nigeria, this isn’t imagination.
It’s reality.
More than 5,000 Christians a year have been killed during the past decade.
More than 10,000 churches have been destroyed.
More than 800 Christian communities have been wiped off the map.
Millions have been displaced by the broader violence.
The numbers are staggering.
But numbers cannot tell this story.
Behind every statistic is a face.
A mother.
A father.
A pastor.
A child.
A church.
A funeral.
And a Christian family wondering if they will be next.
“An estimated 17 Christians are killed every day.”
We Sounded the Alarm
Last year, before Nigeria’s persecuted Christians were receiving the attention they are beginning to receive today, Shelly and I devoted a Huey Alert broadcast to the crisis.
We called it:
“They’re Burning Churches and Killing Christians.” Click HERE to watch or listen.
We couldn’t understand the silence.
Christians were dying.
Churches were burning.
Villages were disappearing.
Yet much of America knew virtually nothing about it.
So, we sounded the alarm.
We asked Christians to pray.
We asked people to speak out.
And we urged President Trump and Marco Rubio to act.
Then, to our surprise, something encouraging happened.
Others independently began speaking out.
Christian organizations.
Pastors.
Members of Congress.
Media personalities.
Religious freedom advocates.
More people began demanding that America pay attention.
And eventually Washington did.
President Trump declared that Christianity was facing an “existential threat” in
Nigeria.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio brought additional attention to the persecution.
The United States began putting greater pressure on Nigeria.
That was an important breakthrough.
But it wasn’t victory.
Because Christians are still being killed.
Then We Met Frank
We knew there was another story that needed to be told.
Not by a politician.
Not by a Washington expert.
Not by someone analyzing statistics from thousands of miles away.
We wanted you to hear from someone who lived it.
His name is Frank Utoo.
Frank is Nigerian.
He is a Christian.
And he is a survivor.
Some interviews inform you.
Others change you.
Our conversation with Frank was one of those interviews.
There is an emotional power to hearing him tell his story that simply cannot be duplicated on a printed page.
Frank grew up in the village of Yerewata.
He remembers his childhood friends.
He remembers his relatives.
He remembers what life was like before the killing.
Today, he says approximately half of the childhood friends he grew up with are gone.
Think about that.
Half.
Not because they moved away.
Not because of old age.
Many were killed in the violence devastating Christian communities.
Frank described relatives murdered.
Friends slaughtered.
Families destroyed.
And then he told us what happened to his village.
In 2025, Yerewata became internationally known after a horrific attack.
Frank says 278 Christians were killed in a single night.
Hundreds of human beings.
Gone.
But perhaps the most disturbing part of Frank’s testimony wasn’t simply the
number murdered.
It was what allegedly happened before the attack.
They Knew an Attack Was Coming
Judd Saul joined Frank for our interview.
Judd is executive director of Equipping the Persecuted.
He first traveled to Nigeria in 2011.
As attacks against Christians increased, he saw an enormous problem.
Christians needed more than sympathy after an attack.
They needed rapid response.
Food.
Medicine.
Shelter.
Intelligence.
Security.
And help before the next attack occurred.
That eventually led to Equipping the Persecuted.
Since beginning its ministry in 2019, the organization says it has helped more than 500,000 persecuted Christians.
But what Judd told us about Frank’s village was shocking.
His organization says it received intelligence approximately one month before the massacre indicating an attack was coming.
Then came additional confirmation.
Two weeks before.
Then again approximately 48 hours before the attack.
Judd says authorities were warned.
The police.
The military.
Government officials.
Then the terrorists came.
According to Judd, the killing continued for approximately four hours.
Help never arrived.
More than 275 people were dead.
Judd told us his organization has issued more than 145 terror alerts with approximately 90% accuracy.
Yet he says Nigerian authorities failed to intervene in response to those warnings.
Those are serious allegations.
And they deserve serious investigation.
The Story Americans May Not Be Hearing
There was another revelation in our interview that surprised us.
Most Americans who know anything about terrorism in Nigeria have heard two names:
Boko Haram.
ISIS.
Both are dangerous Islamist terrorist organizations.
And efforts against them are important.
But Frank and Judd say focusing primarily on those groups misses a major part of what is happening to Christians.
They point instead to violent Fulani ethnic militias operating in Nigeria’s Middle
Belt.
According to our guests, these militants have been responsible for a significant portion of the attacks driving Christians from their villages.
Their warning is simple:
If America wants to protect Christians…
It must focus resources where Christians are actually being slaughtered.
Judd described the process as “death by a thousand attacks.”
One village disappears.
Then another.
Then another.
Christians flee.
Their land changes hands.
And eventually an entire region has been transformed.
This is why Frank and Judd are asking the United States to look beyond the best-known terrorist organizations and concentrate intelligence and security attention on the Middle Belt as well.
Then Something Happened During Our Interview
This may have been the moment that affected Shelly and me most.
We were sitting together discussing statistics.
Seventeen Christians killed every day.
Thousands killed each year.
Hundreds of communities destroyed.
Then Frank received another report from Nigeria.
This wasn’t something that happened five years ago.
Or five months ago.
It had just happened.
A husband and wife had been murdered in their room.
While we were recording the podcast.
Suddenly, 35 Christians a day wasn’t a statistic anymore.
It was happening in real time.
Somewhere in Nigeria, another family was grieving.
And Yet Their Faith Remains
That’s what makes Frank’s testimony so extraordinary.
After everything he has experienced…
He still has hope.
After losing friends…
He still has faith.
After seeing what happened to his village…
He still follows Christ.
That’s the part of the story Americans desperately need to hear.
Persecution hasn’t destroyed the Nigerian church.
These believers continue worshipping.
Pastors continue preaching.
Families continue praying.
Christians continue proclaiming Jesus Christ despite knowing that doing so may cost them everything.
Their courage should challenge every American Christian.
We worship freely.
They sometimes worship knowing someone could attack their church.
We worry about being criticized for our faith.
They worry about being killed for theirs.
And yet they remain faithful.
There Is Hope—But Washington Must Not Stop Now
There has been progress.
President Trump brought badly needed international attention to Nigeria.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also focused attention on religious freedom and the persecution of Christians.
That matters.
The Nigerian government now knows America is watching.
But Christians are still dying.
That means pressure cannot disappear simply because Nigeria has fallen out of the headlines.
Our guests believe the next step is critical.
They are asking the Trump administration to ensure U.S. intelligence, diplomatic, and security efforts include the militants operating throughout Nigeria’s Middle Belt—not simply ISIS and Boko Haram farther north.
President Trump and Secretary Rubio have an opportunity to help save lives.
But Americans must keep reminding Washington:
The crisis isn’t over.
What Can You Do?
You might wonder:
“What can I possibly do about something happening thousands of miles away?”
More than you think.
First…
Watch this interview.
Don’t simply take my word for it.
Listen to Frank.
Watch his face.
Hear his voice.
Listen as he describes his friends.
His family.
His village.
Then listen to Judd explain what his organization sees happening on the ground.
I believe this is one of the most important Huey Alert Podcasts Shelly and I have ever recorded.
Second…
Ask President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to continue putting pressure on Nigeria to protect Christians and to ensure America’s efforts address the violence in the Middle Belt.
Third…
Pray.
Pray for Frank.
Pray for Judd.
Pray for pastors.
Pray for widows.
Pray for children.
Pray for Christians who have been displaced from their homes.
Pray for those who will go to sleep tonight wondering whether they will wake to gunfire.
Fourth…
Share this podcast.
Send it to your pastor.
Your Bible study.
Your family.
Your friends.
Put it on social media.
The more Christians who understand what is happening, the harder it becomes
for the world to look away.
Someday You May Meet Them
There’s one final thought I can’t get out of my mind.
Someday…
If you know Jesus Christ…
You may meet some of these Nigerian believers in Heaven.
The pastor who refused to stop preaching.
The mother who refused to deny Christ.
The young man who lost his life defending his village.
The child whose parents were murdered.
They are strangers to us today.
But they are not strangers to Christ.
They are our brothers and sisters.
Today, they need to know something very simple:
They have not been forgotten.
That’s why Shelly and I hope you’ll watch this extraordinary interview with Frank Utoo and Judd Saul.
Hear their story.
Pray for them.
Speak out for them.
And help us make sure President Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and America’s leaders understand:
The killing has not stopped.
Neither should we.
Watch the Huey Alert Podcast: Christian Genocide in Nigeria: The Shocking Truth the World Has Ignored.
Hear firsthand from Nigerian Christian survivor Frank Utoo and frontline ministry leader Judd Saul.
Watch or listen now by clicking on the links below.
And please…
Pray for Nigeria’s persecuted church.
To watch the podcast, click the following links:
Rumble
YouTube
Real Life Network
To listen only to the audio version of the podcast, click any of the following links:
Spotify
Apple Podcasts
iHeart Podcasts
Amazon Music
FAQs:
Q: Is there really a Christian genocide taking place in Nigeria?
A: Many Christian leaders, human rights organizations, and religious freedom advocates believe Christians in parts of Nigeria are facing systematic persecution that, in some areas, rises to the level of genocide. Thousands of Christians have reportedly been killed, churches destroyed, villages attacked, and millions displaced over the past decade. While experts may differ on terminology, there is broad agreement that Christians in Nigeria are experiencing one of the world’s most severe religious persecution crises.
Q: Why are Christians being targeted in Nigeria?
A: The violence is driven by several extremist groups and longstanding religious and ethnic conflicts. According to our podcast guests, radical Islamist groups seek to drive Christians from key regions of Nigeria and expand Islamist control. They explain how these attacks have continued for years with devastating consequences for Christian communities.
Q: How many Christians are reportedly being killed?
A: Our guests explain that an estimated 35 Christians are killed every day in Nigeria and believe the actual number may be even higher because many attacks are never officially reported. They also discuss reports that more than 5,000 Christians have been killed annually in recent years, with more than 10,000 churches destroyed and approximately 800 Christian communities wiped out.
Q: Why doesn’t the mainstream media report more about this persecution?
A: Many Christians ask this question. International conflicts often receive uneven media attention, and persecution in Nigeria has frequently been overshadowed by other global events. Our guests also discuss what they believe are misunderstandings about who is carrying out many of the attacks and why that has affected international coverage.
Q: Who is Frank Utoo?
A: Frank Utoo is a Nigerian Christian survivor who has personally experienced the persecution affecting Christian communities in Nigeria. During the Huey Alert Podcast, he shares his firsthand testimony about attacks on his community, the loss of family and friends, and why he believes Christians around the world need to understand what is happening. His interview is one of the most moving conversations ever featured on the Huey Alert Podcast.
Q: Who is Judd Saul?
Judd Saul is the founder and executive director of Equipping the Persecuted, a ministry serving persecuted Christians in Nigeria since 2011. His organization provides emergency humanitarian relief, assists displaced Christian families, supports village security initiatives, and has helped more than 500,000 persecuted Christians. He also shares unique insight gained from years of working directly with churches and Christian communities throughout Nigeria.
Q: What has the United States done to help persecuted Christians in Nigeria?
A: President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have taken important steps to increase international attention on religious persecution in Nigeria. Their actions have helped renew pressure on the Nigerian government to better protect Christian communities. However, our guests explain why they believe additional action is still urgently needed to save lives.
Q: What can Christians do to help?
A: Every believer can make a difference. You can:
● Pray daily for persecuted Christians in Nigeria.
● Learn the facts and share them with others.
● Encourage your church to pray for the persecuted church.
● Support ministries serving believers on the front lines.
● Encourage American leaders to continue defending international religious freedom.
● Watch and share this podcast so more Christians understand the crisis.
Awareness often leads to action—and action can help save lives.
Q: Why should I watch this podcast if I’ve already read the article?
A: Because some stories must be heard—not just read.Frank Utoo’s testimony cannot be fully captured in print. Hearing a Nigerian Christian survivor describe what happened to his family, his community, and his country brings an emotional depth that words alone cannot convey. This interview also includes exclusive insights from Judd Saul based on years of ministry inside Nigeria.
Q: What is the most important takeaway from this interview?
A: The persecuted church in Nigeria has not been forgotten by God—but it must not be forgotten by God’s people. This episode reminds us that the Body of Christ is one family. When one part suffers, every believer should care. Watch the podcast. Pray for the persecuted church. Share this interview with your family, friends, and church. Together, we can help shine light into one of the darkest humanitarian crises of our time.
About Craig Huey:
Craig Huey is the founder of Creative Direct Marketing Group (CDMG) and publisher of The Huey Alert, reaching over 100,000 subscribers. He is a leader in direct response marketing and a passionate voice at the intersection of faith, freedom, and culture.