by Raymond Ibrahim, Gatestone Institute
Muslim Persecution of Christians, May 2026
The following are among the murders and abuses Muslims inflicted on Christians throughout the month of May 2026.
Muslim Slaughter of Christians
Nigeria: On May 3, “Muslim Fulani gunmen killed five Christians in a fresh attack on Fan village,” resident Bot James reported. The victims were ambushed returning home from their businesses. Fulani assailants in the same county also killed two Christians in Kassa village on April 27 and four Christians — while injuring five others — in Hurum village on April 19.
On May 8, Muslim Fulani gunmen killed 13 Christians in a pre-dawn attack on the community of Ngbra Zongo in Plateau State. “The attack has left dozens of other Christians injured, hundreds of others displaced,” a spokesperson for the community related. Three pregnant women were among the dead.
One resident, Lawrence Zongo, noted that the gunmen “moved from one house to another attacking the Christian victims in their homes.” The same area has seen repeated assaults on Christian communities. On April 26 in the Rim area, Fulani militia killed pastor Ayuba Choji, his wife, and two children. Church leaders referred to them “martyrs whose lives were claimed by the ongoing genocide against Christians in Nigeria.”
According to a May 20 report, a Christian mathematics teacher, Michael Oyedokun, was beheaded after Islamic terrorists attacked two secondary schools in Oyo State and kidnapped dozens of teachers and students. A video of the slaughter was later released. The coordinated assault targeted schools in predominantly Christian communities, with an estimated 39 pupils and seven teachers abducted.
On May 23, gunmen attacked an overnight prayer vigil at a church in Elerin village, Kwara State, killing three Christians and kidnapping 15 others. The assailants opened fire on worshippers before abducting members of the congregation and fleeing into nearby bushland.