The alert, however, drew a swift response from the Presidency, which questioned the credibility and motive behind the claims, warning that such reports could unnecessarily heighten fear across the country.
The organisation’s founder, Judd Saul, raised the alarm during a roundtable organised by the International Committee on Nigeria in collaboration with the African Jewish Alliance. The meeting took place on Wednesday in Washington DC, United States, and was chaired by a former US congressman, Frank Wolf.
It was gathered that the meeting was attended by Congressmen Riley Moore and Chris Smith, Senator James Lankford, members of the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, as well as representatives from Nigeria.
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Addressing participants, Saul alleged that terrorist groups were regrouping ahead of the planned attacks.
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.”
It was learnt that the roundtable was part of a series of engagements aimed at addressing Nigeria’s security challenges and allegations surrounding the killing of Christians.
A source familiar with the discussions disclosed that Saul had formally relayed the information obtained by his organisation to the US government through Congressman Moore.
“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 further gathered that after the public session, a separate closed-door meeting was held, although details of those deliberations were not made public.
Meanwhile, a senior official of the Department of State Services in Abuja confirmed awareness of the alleged plot, saying preventive steps were already underway.
“The service is aware; we have the intelligence report and we are already working on it,” the officer said briefly on Friday.
Another DSS operative noted that intelligence-gathering efforts had been intensified nationwide, pointing out that attacks in parts of the Middle Belt often follow predictable patterns.
“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.
Riyom and Bokkos local government areas of Plateau State have witnessed repeated attacks in 2025. On October 31, at least six people were killed when bandits attacked the Kwi community in Riyom.
(PUNCH)
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