The Director-General of the National Orientation Agency (NOA), Lanre Issa-Onilu, has criticized former U.S. President Donald Trump over his recent accusation of genocide in Nigeria, describing it as a clear sign of failure within the United States intelligence system.
Issa-Onilu made the remark during the monthly National Joint Security Press Briefing held in Abuja on Monday. He said this was not the first time the U.S. intelligence community had erred, recalling similar lapses in Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan.
“This is not the first time U.S. intelligence has failed Americans,” he said. “It failed in Iraq — where it turned out there were no weapons of mass destruction — and they later apologized. It also failed in Libya and several other instances. I’m certain this is another mistake in their intelligence assessment.”
The NOA boss noted that while Nigeria continues to face internal security challenges and avoidable killings, labeling the situation as genocide was both misleading and irresponsible.
His comments followed Trump’s explosive post on his Truth Social platform on Saturday, in which the former U.S. leader claimed he had ordered the Pentagon to prepare a potential military strike plan against Nigeria, citing what he described as an “existential threat” to Christianity in the country.
Trump wrote that if the Nigerian government failed to end the killings of Christians, the United States would “attack fast, viciously, and sweetly — just like the terrorist thugs attack our cherished Christians.”
When later asked by reporters if such action could include deploying U.S. troops or conducting air strikes, Trump responded, “Could be — I envisage a lot of things. They’re killing Christians in large numbers, and we’re not going to allow that to continue.”
The Nigerian government has since dismissed Trump’s genocide allegation, calling for dialogue and diplomatic engagement to address any misconceptions.
Meanwhile, Issa-Onilu urged Nigerians to remain calm, emphasizing that the federal government is fully committed to protecting all citizens regardless of faith or ethnicity.
