A US congressional panel on Tuesday called on lawmakers to pressure the Nigerian government to abolish Sharia law in northern states and disband Hisbah religious enforcement groups.
Experts told the House briefing that these structures continue to fuel systematic persecution of Christians and other minority communities.
Speaking at the session, Dr Ebenezer Obadare of the Council on Foreign Relations said extremist groups, including Boko Haram, ISWAP, and radicalised Fulani militias, exploit Sharia frameworks and Hisbah operatives to spread ideology, enforce religious conversions, and carry out attacks with minimal resistance.
He advised that the US adopt a two-track approach, urging Washington to collaborate with the Nigerian military to counter Boko Haram while pressing President Bola Tinubu to make Sharia unconstitutional and dissolve Hisbah groups in the twelve northern states that implemented it in 2000.
Obadare noted that recent measures by the Nigerian government show external pressure can be effective. Since the Country of Particular Concern designation, President Tinubu has authorised air strikes on insurgent positions, approved recruitment of 30,000 additional police officers, and declared a national security emergency.
The bipartisan session, led by Appropriations Vice Chair Mario DÃaz Balart and attended by the House Foreign Affairs Committee, highlighted ongoing religious violence, including kidnappings, blasphemy prosecutions, and mass killings, rejecting claims that the crisis is solely about land or resources.
Obadare stressed that the root of the problem remains jihadist violence, warning that Boko Haram’s goal to dismantle the Nigerian state and establish an Islamic order continues to threaten national stability and must be the priority of any effective strategy.
