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Nicki Minaj is defending herself after the rapper praised President Donald Trump for threatening military action against Nigeria over the persecution of Christians. Trump said the African country was “facing an existential threat” in which “thousands of Christians are being killed” in a post on his Truth Social account Friday, Oct. 31. “Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter. I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘COUNTRY OF PARTICULAR CONCERN’ — But that is the least of it," Trump wrote. “When Christians, or any such group, is slaughtered like is happening in Nigeria (3,100 versus 4,476 Worldwide), something must be done! I am asking Congressman Riley Moore, together with Chairman Tom Cole and the House Appropriations Committee, to immediately look into this matter, and report back to me,” the president continued. “The United States cannot stand by while such atrocities are happening in Nigeria, and numerous other Countries. We stand ready, willing, and able to save our Great Christian population around the World!” Minaj, an open Christian, then shared a screenshot of Trump’s post on her X profile Saturday, Nov. 1. She started her post by saying that “reading this made me feel a deep sense of gratitude” before going deeper into the issue. “We live in a country where we can freely worship God. No group should ever be persecuted for practicing their religion. We don’t have to share the same beliefs in order for us to respect each other,” Minaj wrote. “Numerous countries all around the world are being affected by this horror & it’s dangerous to pretend we don’t notice. Thank you to The President & his team for taking this seriously. God bless every persecuted Christian. Let’s remember to lift them up in prayer.” Trump said in a later Truth post that “if the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.” He added, “I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!” While some, including United States Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz, applauded Minaj, others slammed the hit rapper for appearing to support Trump and chiming in on foreign matters of which she may not be the most knowledgeable. One social media user, self-described as “a die hard fan,” ridiculed Minaj for “cozying up to this [expletive] loser,” in an X post. “I might actually have to tap out,” they wrote. “We live in a country that wants to weaponize religion so YOUR GAY FANS can be pushed into a corner and silenced.” Minaj later responded to this post by writing, “Imagine hearing that Christians are being MURDERED & making it about you being gay,” Pop Crave posted on X Monday. “I’ll advocate for you the same way that I’m advocating for MURDERED CHRISTIANS IN NIGERIA. like I always have. Just remember that. Diligently. Compassionately. Just remember that part, too!!!!” Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, has a population of more than 230 million people, according to the CIA World Factbook. More than half of the population, 53.3%, are Muslim while just over 35% of citizens are Christian. The Associated Press has found that both Christians and Muslims are killed in Nigeria’s security crises, but victims are often determined by their locations and not religion. Therefore, Trump’s military threat and designation are said to be based on misleading reports from more than a decade ago based around Nigeria’s home-grown Boko Haram Islamic group. The group, which opposes Western education, made international headlines when it infamously kidnapped 276 predominantly Christian schoolgirls from the town of Chibok in 2014. Recently, however, members of Trump’s administration — including U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz — have been arguing that attacks on Christians in Nigeria constitute a “genocide,” The Independent reported. That said, Trump’s actions appear to be part of his “style of going forceful in order to force a sit-down and have a conversation,” Daniel Bwala, a spokesman for Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, told the AP Sunday. “When it comes to matters of military operation in Nigeria, this is a matter that two leaders have to agree on,” Bwala told the outlet. “It is not something unilaterally you can do especially since that country is a sovereign state and that country is not aiding and abating that (crime).” In addition, the U.S. also cannot unilaterally carry out any military operation in Nigeria, Bwala added. Tinubu has also rejected Trump’s designation of Nigeria as a country of particular concern and vowed to work with the U.S. government and foreign partners ”to deepen cooperation on protection of communities of all faiths," according to the AP.
