By Tony Okafor, Awka
No fewer than 3,083 Christians were killed and 3,193 abducted in attacks allegedly carried out by Islamic jihadist groups across Nigeria between January and August 2026, the International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (InterSociety) has said
The organisation, in its latest report released in Enugu on Sunday, also alleged that at least 19,800 churches had been attacked or destroyed in Nigeria since July 2009, while 25 Catholic priests, pastors and other Christian clergy were killed, abducted or attacked between January and August this year.
The report was signed by Emeka Umeagbalasi, criminologist and graduate of Security Studies, and Lead Researcher and Head of InterSociety Nigeria; Chidinma Evangeline Udegbunam, Barrister-at-Law and Head, Department of Campaign and Publicity; and Obianuju Joy Igboeli, Barrister-at-Law and Head, Department of Civil Liberties and Rule of Law.
According to the report, July and August alone accounted for 437 Christian deaths and 393 abductions.
InterSociety said its figures were compiled from primary and secondary sources, including accounts from residents, survivors and eyewitnesses in communities affected by the attacks.
It alleged that jihadist Fulani herdsmen and jihadist Fulani bandits accounted for about 90 per cent of the attacks recorded during the period.
The organisation said 138 Christians were killed and 180 abducted in August alone, with many of the attacks concentrated in Plateau and Benue states.
It said the August killings included scores of deaths recorded in Plateau, Benue, Adamawa and Kaduna states, while several abductions occurred in Kogi, Benue, Ondo, Imo, Edo, Enugu and other states.
InterSociety also claimed that about 70 per cent of the Christians abducted in August were from the South-East, particularly Igbo travellers using major interstate roads.
It cited the abduction of passengers travelling towards Lagos and Abuja in Kogi, Benue and Ondo states, as well as the kidnapping of Christian residents in Imo and Enugu states.
Among those it identified as victims were a 10-month-old baby and six other Christians abducted at Ndegwu in Imo State, as well as passengers and National Youth Service Corps members travelling through Kogi State.
The group said 120 of the estimated 180 Christians abducted in August were likely to have been from Igbo land.
InterSociety further claimed that at least 2,550 Christians were killed and 2,800 abducted between January and June 2026.
With the July and August figures added, it put the eight-month total at 3,083 deaths and 3,193 abductions.
The organisation said the attacks had also taken a heavy toll on Christian places of worship.
It estimated that churches attacked or destroyed since July 2009 had risen from about 19,400 at the end of 2025 to 19,700 by June 2026 and approximately 19,800 by the end of August.
According to the report, at least 230 churches in parts of Taraba State had been attacked or destroyed between September 2025 and August 2026, while more than 100,000 Catholic parishioners were allegedly displaced.
It said about 200 Christian villages had also been sacked in the affected areas, forcing residents to flee their homes.
InterSociety said the situation had particularly affected the Catholic dioceses of Wukari and Jalingo, alleging that 16 priests had been forced to flee their pastoral duties and that parish houses belonging to at least eight priests had been razed.
It also cited the Universal Reformed Christian Church (NKST), which it said reported the loss of 5,987 members and 753 churches to attacks by armed Fulani groups in Benue State.
Similarly, the organisation recalled that the Church of the Brethren in Nigeria (EYN) had previously reported losing more than 8,600 members and hundreds of worship centres to Boko Haram attacks, particularly in Borno, Yobe, Adamawa and Taraba states.
InterSociety said the number of EYN members lost to jihadist violence had subsequently risen to about 21,000, adding that the figures represented its assessment of religiously motivated violence and were based on its definition of jihadist attacks by groups it identified as Islamic extremist organisations.
It called on the Federal Government and security agencies to take urgent measures to protect vulnerable Christian communities, places of worship and travellers on major highways.
The organisation said its report covered attacks it considered religiously motivated and perpetrated by jihadist groups, as well as alleged involvement or support by armed state actors.
