A new report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has revealed that an estimated 30,000 armed Fulani militants are currently operating across Nigeria, describing the groups as among the deadliest non-state actors responsible for religious freedom violations and rising insecurity in the country.

The report, titled “Nonstate Violators of Religious Freedom in Nigeria: Fulani Militants,” said the militants operate in cells ranging from 10 to 1,000 members and have intensified attacks across Nigeria’s Middle Belt and Southern regions, leaving thousands dead and displacing entire communities.

According to USCIRF, violence linked to Fulani militants accounted for the highest number of deaths among religious communities in Nigeria over the past year, surpassing casualties caused by organised insurgent groups and criminal gangs.

The commission noted that while many of the attacks targeted Christian communities, Muslim populations had also suffered killings, kidnappings and raids.

“Violence by Fulani militants caused the highest number of deaths among all religious communities in Nigeria over the last year,” the report stated.

USCIRF said the armed groups operate without a central leadership structure but frequently collaborate with bandits and extremist organisations.

“These actors operate in a variety of contexts and with a multiplicity of likely aims and motivations,” the commission stated, adding that some factions coordinate with criminal gangs seeking financial gain as well as terrorist organisations promoting violent extremist ideologies.

The report further disclosed that militants often launch night attacks on isolated rural settlements using motorcycles, automatic weapons and machetes, with the aim of forcing residents off ancestral lands.

“They often wield machetes and descend on vulnerable communities during the night, eliciting terror as a way to force victims to quickly leave and to achieve greater control of desired land,” USCIRF noted.

The commission estimated that attacks by Fulani militants and other armed groups have displaced at least 1.3 million people across Nigeria’s Middle Belt, many of whom now live in overcrowded camps with poor sanitation and inadequate security.

Highlighting major incidents recorded in 2025 and early 2026, the report cited a June 2025 attack in Benue State that reportedly killed at least 200 people, including internally displaced persons sheltering in a Catholic mission.

USCIRF also referenced the massacre in Yelwata, Benue State, where more than 200 Christians — mostly women and children — were reportedly killed and over 3,000 residents displaced.

The report alleged that some attacks were deliberately timed to coincide with Christian religious celebrations such as Christmas and Easter in order to heighten psychological trauma.

In another incident cited by the commission, suspected Fulani militants reportedly killed at least 32 people in Niger State in February 2026 and attacked Holy Trinity Parish in Kaduna State’s Kafanchan Diocese, killing three persons and abducting 11 others, including parish priest, Father Nathaniel Asuwaye.

USCIRF also documented attacks on Muslim communities, including the February 2026 abduction of an imam and seven worshippers from a mosque in Plateau State, where kidnappers reportedly demanded a N16 million ransom.

The report stated that Palm Sunday and Easter attacks in April 2026 left dozens dead across Plateau, Kaduna and Benue states.

“On Easter Sunday, Fulani militants reportedly killed five worshippers at two churches in Kaduna State while abducting 31 others,” the commission said.

USCIRF acknowledged that conflicting narratives continue to shape public discourse around the violence, with some analysts attributing the crisis to environmental pressures and economic competition, while others describe it as targeted religious persecution.

“In fact, multiple and overlapping factors, including religion in many cases, likely spur Fulani militants to attack communities or individuals,” the report stated.

The commission criticised both federal and state authorities for what it described as inadequate responses to the attacks, noting persistent complaints from victims over delayed security intervention.

“Victims have long reported that security forces are consistently slow to respond to attacks on their communities,” USCIRF stated.

The report also referenced accusations by some Christian advocacy groups alleging bias by security agencies in favour of Muslim communities during investigations and operations.

As part of efforts to curb the violence, USCIRF noted that governors from 11 states launched a ranching initiative in June 2025 aimed at reducing conflicts over grazing routes and farmlands.

At the federal level, the commission linked renewed government action to the October 2025 decision by former US President Donald Trump to redesignate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern over religious freedom violations.

Following the designation, President Bola Tinubu reportedly classified kidnappers and violent armed groups, including Fulani militants, as terrorists in December 2025.

The report stated that security agencies rescued 309 hostages during operations in Kogi and Kwara states in January 2026, while 129 suspected Fulani militants were arrested and 55 others killed.

USCIRF also highlighted increasing scrutiny of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), which has faced allegations from Christian leaders over alleged links to militant violence and land invasions.

However, the association denied supporting criminal activity.

“We do not support, condone, harbour, finance, or protect any form of criminality, extremism or violence,” MACBAN said, according to the report.

The commission further disclosed that the US Congress introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026 in February, proposing sanctions against MACBAN over alleged involvement in severe religious freedom violations.

Despite recent security operations and peace-building efforts, USCIRF warned that insecurity across central Nigeria remains severe and persistent.

“As a result, central Nigeria remains entrenched in an intense, daily, and seemingly perpetual crisis of insecurity,” the report concluded.

The commission added that the violence is likely to persist unless federal and state governments create conditions that better support peaceful coexistence and the safe practice of religious freedom.