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Equipping The Persecuted, a humanitarian organization, has expressed concern over what it claims is a scheme to murder a large number of people on Christmas Day in certain northern regions.

However, the Presidency quickly questioned the group’s intentions, stating that the alarm was dubious and may unnecessarily frighten Nigerians.

Judd Saul, the organization’s founder, gave a speech at a roundtable discussion organized by the African Jewish Alliance and the International Committee on Nigeria.

Frank Wolf, a former congressman, presided over the meeting, which took place on Wednesday in Washington, DC, USA.

Congressmen Riley Moore and Chris Smith, Senator James Lankford, members of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, and a delegation from Nigeria were reportedly present at the conference.

According to Saul, terrorists have begun to reorganize for the upcoming assaults.

He said, “They are gathering forces around the Plateau and Nasarawa border, along the Nasarawa-Benue border and along the Nasarawa-Kaduna border. They are planning to hit on Christmas Day in Riyom, Bokkos, Kafanchan and Agatu.

“We got very reliable information that they are weaponising for a Christmas Day massacre. I am imploring the Nigerian government and President Donald Trump to do something so we don’t have a bunch of dead Christians in Nigeria.”

According to our correspondents, the meeting was part of a series of discussions aimed at resolving Nigeria’s insecurity and addressing allegations of Christian killings.

Saul had formally conveyed the aforementioned report his organization received to the administration through Moore, a source close to the US government told Saturday PUNCH.

“All the congressmen at the meeting have been to Nigeria many times. They’ve been involved in this matter since (Bill) Clinton was president. They classified the attackers mostly as terrorists and jihadists. Saul has officially notified the US through Riley, who will be filing a report to President Trump on it,” the source said.

It was also discovered that additional discussion took occurred in a separate, closed-door meeting that followed Saul’s speech.

This meeting’s discussions were kept confidential.

According to a top Department of State Services officer in Abuja, the organization was aware of the planned Christmas Day attacks and had taken preventative action.

“The service is aware; we have the intelligence report and we are already working on it,” the officer stated in a short conversation with Saturday PUNCH on Friday.

The DSS has stepped up its nationwide intelligence-gathering efforts, according to another secret agency agent.

“We know the trend of attacks in those areas. I was in Kaduna for over two years, and I can tell you that these people (bandits) have a pattern. We (DSS) have always provided intelligence. The intelligence report by the US NGO may be correct, because communities in the Middle Belt have always come under attack during festive periods.

“But I am sure the service would also have got wind of any planned attack by the bandits, and preventive measures would have been put in place,” he said.

In 2025, there have been numerous bandit raids on Riyom and Bokkos in Plateau State.

At least six people were killed when bandits raided the Kwi community in Riyom on October 31.

At least 32 residents, including women and young children, were slain in a significant attack on Jebu hamlet in the Tahoss District of the same local authority.

About 13 individuals were killed when gunmen broke into the Juwan and Manja settlements in Bokkos and the nearby Mangu local government regions on June 19 and 21 of this year.

Numerous attacks on communities in the two local government districts were found to go unreported.

This year, terror attacks have also occurred in Benue State’s Agatu Local Government Area, killing dozens.

The worst happened on June 1 in the settlements of Edikwu Ankpali and Opaha, where at least 28 people—presumably mostly Christians—were slain.

Three people were abducted and a pastor was killed in Anwule village, which is close to the boundary between Agatu and Ohimini, earlier in November.

Additionally, an unknown number of people were reportedly killed and numerous others were displaced when suspected Fulani herdsmen stormed Chawai settlements near Kafanchan in Southern Kaduna earlier last month.

Benjamin Hundeyin, the Force Public Relations Officer, did not answer his calls or reply to a text message regarding the purported scheme.

At the time this story was filed, Maj. Gen. Michael Onoja, the Director of Defense Media Operation, was not available for comment.

Additionally, attempts to obtain answers from the police commands in Kaduna, Plateau, and Benue were unsuccessful.

As of the time of publication, Udeme Edet, the public relations officer for the Benue State Police, had promised to react to our correspondent, but he had never done so. Additionally, calls from representatives of other states went unanswered.

However, a top official who was not allowed to speak to the press and does not want his name to appear in print pledged that the appropriate steps would be taken to prevent the attacks.

He said, “We will intensify surveillance for early warning and continue to deepen our intelligence penetration. However there is no specific detailed Intel at this end.”

Alert dismissed by the presidency

In response, the President rejected the warning, claiming that the group’s assertions could incite needless anxiety.

In response to a question, Mr. Temitope Ajayi, Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Media and Publicity, advised the public to exercise caution while disseminating reports from outside organizations without first confirming their motives.

He said, “We should be very careful how we digest and process some of these doubtful reports by external organisations who are setting a stage for internal crisis in our country. We should not be providing oxygen for reports that heighten a sense of insecurity in our country.”

“What is the motive and agenda of this organization in raising this kind of alarm about a likely terror attack in the three states and on Christmas Day?” Ajayi continued, questioning the purpose of the notice.

Nonetheless, he reassured Nigerians that security forces were ready to stop any threat.

“Whatever the motive is, our security forces are capable of foiling any terror attack and keeping us safe,” he said.

“Nigerians should not entertain any fear in any part of the country. The police and the military are working to ensure we have a peaceful Christmas and Yuletide season.”

MBF and SOKAPU demand more security

The Middle Belt Forum stated that there were compelling signs that the assertion was not far from the truth, even if it had not yet formally received such evidence.

The MBF President, Dr. Bitrus Pogu, told Saturday PUNCH that three weeks prior to the Yelwata attack, the forum received a similar intelligence report and immediately informed the appropriate authorities.

“Before the Fulani militia attacked the Yelwata community, we had already known that the attack would happen three weeks before. So, the Intel may not be far from the truth.

“But we still have a government in place, which hasn’t told us it has failed completely. So, the government will be alerted for them to do the needful and ensure that vulnerable communities in the state, especially those dominated by Christians, are adequately protected for Christmas,” Pogu said.

He added, “Officially, it has to be on record that the government is aware of such a mischievous plan to attack, kill, maim and displace people from their ancestral land, which has been the practice over the years. So, as soon as we get the Intel, we will notify those in government.”

In a same vein, Josiah Abraks, a representative for the Southern Kaduna Peoples’ Union, stated that bandit attacks frequently occur in the area during holiday seasons.

“I am not fully aware of that information. But southern parts of Kaduna have always been attacked during the Yuletide. Bandits attack communities in the area on Christmas Day,” Abraks said.

“We just have to plead with the security agencies to ensure that security operatives are mounted in strategic areas across the state during the festive period.

“Secondly, we will implore our communities to mount surveillance and report any strange movement of unknown persons in their areas to the appropriate authorities,” he added.

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