The highlights this week: U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to Nigeria highlight the country’s internal rifts, Tanzania’s government charges protesters with treason, and the African Union sounds the alarm in Mali .
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The highlights this week: U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to Nigeria highlight the country’s internal rifts, Tanzania’s government charges protesters with treason, and the African Union sounds the alarm in Mali.
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Nigerians Respond to Trump’s Threats
Over the weekend, protests against U.S. military intervention popped up in the Nigerian cities of Lagos and Kano following U.S. President Donald Trump’s recent threat to go “guns-a-blazing” into Africa’s most populous country over false claims of Christian persecution.
Demonstrators chanted “America, leave us alone.” They held placards that read, “Nigerians united against U.S. threat of military invasion” and “America wants to control our resources.” The protests may have been modest, but they reflect rising concern among Nigerians as their patience wanes for their government to respond decisively to Trump’s threats.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu’s administration has urged the public to stay calm while it pursues diplomacy with Washington. Meanwhile, Nigeria’s newly appointed army chief , Lt. Gen. Waidi Shaibu, has vowed to intensify operations in the country’s north, which has been under attack by Islamists for decades.
So far, the government’s mixed and uncoordinated response to Trump has angered many Nigerians.
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