Political satirist and self-described liberal, Bill Maher, long an outspoken critic of Christianity, recently caused a firestorm when he put a searing spotlight on the mass murders of Christians in Nigeria, where more Christians are killed than anywhere else in the world.
During the September 26 episode of his HBO show “Real Time with Bill Maher,” the comedian <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/because-the-jews-arent-involved-maher-slams-media-for-ignoring-christian-genocide-in-africa?author=Hank+Berrien&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=%E2%80%98Because+The+Jews+Aren%E2%80%99t+Involved%E2%80%99%3A+Maher+Slams+Media+For+Ignoring+Christian+Genocide+In+Africa">pointed out the atrocities</a> perpetrated against Nigerian Christians, saying, “They’ve killed over 100,000 since 2009. They’ve burned 18,000 churches,” referring to the violence of Islamists in Nigeria, such as Boko Haram. In his comments, he criticized both the media and pro-Hamas protestors, stating, “This is so much more of a genocide attempt than what is going on in Gaza. Where are kids protesting this?” Surprisingly, and thankfully, his audience erupted into vigorous applause.
His remarks quickly went viral on social media, triggering podcasts and talk shows to highlight the mass murders.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Bill Maher delivers a surprising moment on air as he calls out the slaughter of CHRISTIANS in Nigeria that the media refuses to cover.
“If you don’t know what’s going on in Nigeria, your media sources SUCK,” Maher said.
“You are in a BUBBLE. I’m not a Christian, but they are… <a href="https://t.co/XzDD3LYBPB">pic.twitter.com/XzDD3LYBPB</a>
— Vigilant Fox 🦊 (@VigilantFox) <a href="https://twitter.com/VigilantFox/status/1971778531882316036?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 27, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Credit: @VigilantFox/X.com
I now spend most of my life living in Northern Nigeria, where this genocide is happening. I know firsthand the reality of the gruesome violence against Christians. I have even carried the bodies of my friends who have been murdered. So, I was thrilled to see Maher take valuable airtime to highlight the horrific reality of Nigeria’s Christian genocide.
One of Maher’s more poignant comments came when he stated, “The fact that this issue has not gotten on people’s radar. It’s pretty amazing. If you don’t know what’s going on in Nigeria, your media sources suck. You are in a bubble.” It causes one to ask the very question implied by Maher. Why don’t more people know about what’s going on in Nigeria?
The United States Government, media, and even the American Church seem to be silent on the issue. Indeed, over 100,000 Christians have been slaughtered since 2009. By July of this year, 7,000 more Christians were murdered in cold blood. Currently, thirty Christians are killed every day in Nigeria, thousands of churches are destroyed, hundreds of pastors are abducted, and millions of people are left starving. The silence is deafening. 
An abundance of attention has been given to Gaza, Ukraine, and Iran. So, why is virtually no attention being given to the thousands of Christians who are being murdered every year in Nigeria and the atrocities of Boko Haram and ISWA?
One possible answer is that it may be much easier to bury one’s head in the sand than to deal with the problem. That has been the approach of recent administrations in the United States. In 2021, the Biden Administration inexplicably removed Nigeria from the State Department’s “Country of Particular Concern” list. When the State Department offered its report on religious freedom, the following year, Nigeria was not even mentioned. Outrageously, at the same time, Christians were being killed by the thousands, and the genocide was in full swing. President Biden even ignored a resolution from the House Foreign Affairs Committee calling for immediate intervention in Nigeria. With that, a precedent was set, and the United States government refused even to acknowledge that the problem existed. It has yet to be seen if the Trump administration will recognize this genocide or continue to ignore it. 
<div id="attachment_790095" style="width: 849px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-790095" class="size-large wp-image-790095" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/09/GettyImages-1204495232-839x576.jpg" alt="Christians faithfuls hold signs as they march on the streets of Abuja during a prayer and penance for peace and security in Nigeria in Abuja on March 1, 2020. - The Catholic Bishops of Nigeria gathered faithfuls as well as other Christians and other people to pray for security and to denounce the barbaric killings of Christians by the Boko Haram insurgents and the incessant cases of kidnapping for ransom in Nigeria. (Photo by Kola SULAIMON / AFP)" width="839" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/09/GettyImages-1204495232-839x576.jpg 839w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/09/GettyImages-1204495232-300x206.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/09/GettyImages-1204495232-768x527.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2024/09/GettyImages-1204495232.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 839px) 100vw, 839px" />Credit: Photo by KOLA SULAIMON/AFP via Getty Images.</div>
In the media, there is a dark pattern concerning genocides. During World War II, many German citizens knew what was happening in the death camps. Although some reports of the mass killing of Jews were being circulated in the American media, it was not given nearly the attention it deserved. But rather than blow the whistle and investigate the claims, the American media remained largely silent. The same thing happened with the killing fields of Cambodia and the Rwandan genocide. During both events, the United States and the world stayed quiet and did nothing of consequence.
A genocide is the deliberate and planned attempt to destroy a national, ethnic, racial, or religious group. <a href="https://www.un.org/en/academic-impact/origins-genocide">According to the UN</a>, what we learn from history is that genocides can last for decades without shocking the conscience of the world. While the killing is happening, very few speak out. Ironically, when the genocides are over, we make movies about them. It’s far easier to deal with the aftermath than it is to face the actual atrocities.
The most shameful has been the silence of the American church. We are the wealthiest and most influential nation in the world. It has the resources, reach, and influence to raise awareness and compel the faith community to get involved. The American church has the means to sway people, lawmakers, and the media, and urge them to take action. Unfortunately, it has followed suit and remained oddly quiet. The Bible teaches us that it is our job to bring light to the hidden things of darkness (Eph. 5:11-14). If we refuse, how can we possibly expect anyone else to act?
I am grateful that Bill Maher was courageous enough to speak out on the Nigerian genocide, prompting a worldwide conversation. It shows us what one liberal, atheist comedian, who makes a 47-second comment, can do. Imagine the impact if all of us did the same.
* * *
<a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/ourfounder" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brad Brandon</a> is the founder and CEO of <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Across Nigeria</a>. Since 2018, he has been actively serving in predominantly high-risk, highly persecuted areas like Northern Nigeria and other parts of West Africa.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

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Bill Maher Exposes Nigeria’s Christian Genocide In 47 Seconds

Africa

Boko Haram

Christians

Islamic Jihad

Muslims

Nancy Mace

Nigeria

As conditions in northern Nigeria continue to deteriorate, the U.S. State Department inexplicably approved a potential sale of <a href="https://www.dsca.mil/Press-Media/Major-Arms-Sales/Article-Display/Article/4273754/nigeria-munitions-precision-bombs-and-precision-rockets">$346 million</a> in arms to the Nigerian military. The multimillion-dollar deal comes as northern Nigeria further descends into violent turmoil as killings, kidnappings, and raids continue to destabilize communities throughout the region.
After years of <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/">working in the region</a>, I&#8217;ve seen arms deals like this before. They rarely, if ever, work. In fact, they often make things worse. The U.S. has a terrible habit of assuming money or weapons can resolve every conflict, while ignoring the unique cultural and historical factors that created the problem in the first place.
The Nigerian government indeed needs assistance in providing and maintaining security. Terrorist groups like Islamic State of West Africa Province (ISWAP), Boko Haram, and a host of factional bandit groups have successfully destabilized nearly the entire northern territory of the country. The Nigerian military is ill-equipped to deal with these challenges.
The International Society for Civil Liberties has calculated that more than <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/christians-killed-nigeria-religion-2116416">7,000 Christians were killed</a> during the first 220 days of 2025. Although the violence is predominantly focused on the Christian community, Muslims are suffering at the hands of these extremist groups, too. Just this month, armed extremists entered a mosque in northern Nigeria and <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/bandits-kill-least-27-northern-nigeria-mosque-attack-officials-say-2025-08-19/">killed 27 worshippers</a>. This year is already the deadliest in recent memory, and by year&#8217;s end, it will very likely be the deadliest ever in Nigeria’s history.
In the face of rising violence and extremism, from 2000 to 2021, the U.S. State Department dumped $232 million in “<a href="https://watson.brown.edu/chrhs/files/chrhs/imce/partnerships/Civ-Mil/Nigeria-May-2022-Factsheet.pdf">security sector assistance</a>,” $593 million in foreign military sales, and $305 million in “direct commercial sales” from private companies into Nigeria. All in an effort to stop the rise of terrorism and suppress newly formed terrorist groups, including Boko Haram.
Did it work? Absolutely not.
Since Boko Haram’s formation in 2002, they have only grown in strength and numbers. What started as a handful of extremists with Jihadi ideals to rid northern Nigeria of anything western has grown into an army of thousands. And while the U.S. was still throwing money and weapons at the problem, another, more menacing group was forming. In 2015, ISWAP was born when a group within Boko Haram defected and pledged its allegiance to ISIS. This group has grown into an army of 20,000.
While both Republican and Democratic administrations and Congresses tried to solve the problem with money and arms, the problem only grew. 
By the end of 2020, an estimated <a href="https://www.genocidewatch.com/single-post/nigeria-s-silent-slaughter-62-000-christians-murdered-since-2000">60,000 people were directly killed</a> by the violence of these two groups alone. And according to a 2021 report by the United Nations Development Programme, the insurgency had <a href="https://www.undp.org/sites/g/files/zskgke326/files/migration/ng/Assessing-the-Impact-of-Conflict-on-Development-in-NE-Nigeria---The-Report.pdf">caused the death of 350,000 people</a> from the conflict’s indirect consequences (like lack of food, healthcare, etc).
Anyone looking at the policy of selling arms to Nigeria would be hard pressed to say, “Job well done.”
Arms sales to Nigeria are a debacle for two reasons. First, Nigeria is notorious for its corruption. Corruption is woven into the very fabric of Nigeria’s culture. As quickly as the U.S. sends money and arms, the resources are often diverted from their intended destination.
In 2016, <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/nigerian-military-some-officers-selling-arms-to-boko-haram/3493038.html">Nigeria’s military was forced to admit</a> that many of its officers were selling arms and ammunition to Boko Haram and fraudulently diverting hundreds of millions of dollars budgeted to help suppress the insurgency. One four-star general was even accused of <a href="https://www.voanews.com/a/nigerian-military-some-officers-selling-arms-to-boko-haram/3493038.html">skimming $24 million</a> to build a shopping center in Abuja. He was relieved of his command but never convicted.
For a State Department that seems set on getting rid of fraud, waste, and abuse, I don’t think sending unsupervised money and weapons to Nigeria is a wise step in the right direction.
Secondly, the Nigerian military has been known to make serious mistakes that cost innocent lives. The <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn0y30766kjo">latest example</a> happened in May, when the Nigerian Air Force bombed a local self-defense group, mistaking them for insurgents. Ironically, the <a href="https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-country-reports-on-human-rights-practices/nigeria/">State Department&#8217;s Annual Human Rights Report</a> warning that Nigerian air strikes kill civilians was released the same week the department approved the latest weapons sale.
The reality is this: Nigeria needs help to suppress the growth of terrorist groups in the north and they cannot fight stone-cold killers with peace signs and flowers.
However, this is an extremely complex problem, and the solution is not unilateral. It will take a multi-layered approach to see any degree of success. Any funding and weapons should never be approved without a plan for oversight and strict accountability – something that has never been part of our weapons aid in the past.
I don’t pretend to have all the answers. But I know <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/">northern Nigeria</a>. I know the language, the culture, and the people. And one thing I am sure of is that if all the U.S. is prepared to do is throw guns, ammunition, and money at the problem, we will only get more of the same.
* * *
<a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/ourfounder" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brad Brandon</a> is the founder and CEO of <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Across Nigeria</a>. Since 2018, he has been actively serving in predominantly high-risk, highly persecuted areas like Northern Nigeria and other parts of West Africa.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

military equipment ammunition and camouflage uniform

Why The Latest U.S. Arms Deal With Nigeria Will Only Fuel More Violence

Federal Government

Military Weapons

Opinion

State Department

What is being called a “silent genocide” in Africa has reportedly included ISIS-aligned forces beheading Christians in Mozambique.
“The Islamic State &#8211; Mozambique Province (ISMP) recently released 20 photos boasting of four attacks on &#8216;Christian villages&#8217; in the Chiure district, in <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/category/world/world-regions/africa">Mozambique&#8217;s northern</a> Cabo Delgado province, according to MEMRI,” Fox News <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/isis-soldiers-behead-christians-mozambique-burning-church-homes-silent-genocide">reported</a>. “The images also allegedly depict the beheadings of a member of what the jihadists consider ‘infidel militias’ and two Christian civilians. Rampaging jihadist groups celebrated the killings.”
Islamic State Mozambique Province fighters allegedly captured and beheaded six Christians in the village of Natocua in the Ancuabe district of Mozambique&#8217;s Cabo Delgado Province on July 22, according to MEMRI.
The U.S. State Department designated ISMP as a foreign terrorist organization in 2021.
“What we see in Africa today is a kind of silent genocide or silent, brutal, savage war that is occurring in the shadows and all too often ignored by the international community,” MEMRI Vice President Alberto Miguel Fernandez stated to <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/world/isis-soldiers-behead-christians-mozambique-burning-church-homes-silent-genocide">Fox News Digital</a>. “The fact that jihadist groups are in a position to take over not one, not two, but several countries in Africa – take over the whole country or most of several countries – is dangerous. It&#8217;s very dangerous for the national security of the United States, let alone the security of the poor people who are there – Christians or Muslims or whoever they are.”
“The goal is eliminating Christian communities,” he continued. “Yes. Completely. Basically with these jihadist groups, they push down from safe havens that they have; they want to eliminate all the Christians in that area, take that over and keep pushing, keep pushing as far as they can go. Non-Christians, say, the Muslim population &#8230; are given a choice: either join us or you too will face killing and annihilation. Christians, of course, are not going to be asked to join; Christians are going to be targeted and destroyed.”
Fernandez has previously served as director of the Office of Press and Public Diplomacy in the Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs at the State Department, as well as Coordinator for Strategic Counterterrorism Communications (CSCC) at the State Department.
The United Nations reported that there was mass displacement of citizens occurring, but did not specify who was responsible, <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/08/1165560">stating</a>, “According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (<a href="https://www.unocha.org/" data-extlink="">OCHA</a>), attacks by armed groups between 20 and 28 July triggered the displacement of at least 46,667 people across the districts of Chiúre, Ancuabe and Muidumbe. Chiúre was the hardest hit, with more than 42,000 people uprooted – over half of them children.”
“I&#8217;m no fan of the United Nations in general, but I think what they&#8217;re doing is kind of the lowest common denominator,&#8221; Fernandez said. “It&#8217;s kind of easy to be vague like that. The fact that some of this and some of the worst of it is happening because of a deep anti-Christian animus, hatred of Christians, religiously-based hatred of Christians is something that the UN usually doesn&#8217;t like to talk about.”
Passionist missionary Father Kwiriwi Fonseca in Mozambique sent a <a href="https://www.churchinneed.org/christians-are-suffering-greatly-in-mozambique-says-passionist-priest/">message</a> saying, “All the newly displaced mentioned having fled because of direct attacks on their villages, involving looting, arson, kidnappings, and selective murders &#8230; many Christians are suffering. Some chapels have also been burned, as have their houses. The social projects no longer work, and the people are in despair.”

MOZAMBIQUE-UNREST

‘Silent Genocide’: ISIS Forces Behead Christians In Mozambique Terror Campaign

‘Silent Genocide’: ISIS Forces Behead Christians in Mozambique Terror Campaign

genocide

Mozambique

Terrorism

World

More than 40 Christians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo were killed by Islamic militants early Sunday morning, according to reports from multiple Christian organizations and the United Nations.
The victims, including at least nine children, were holding a prayer vigil as part of a summer holiday session in the early morning hours in the city of Komanda when they were attacked by the Allied Democratic Forces, a radical Islamic rebel group with ties to the Islamic State, <a href="https://www.churchinneed.org/dozens-killed-in-another-church-massacre-in-dr-congo/">according</a> to Aid to the Church in Need.
&#8220;The attack occurred at around 1 o’clock in the morning. The rebels entered the church and murdered a large number of children, both inside the church building and in the compound,&#8221; said Fr. Marcelo Oliveira, a longtime missionary in the Congo.
Islamic militants set fire to homes and shops in Komanda before fleeing. The terrorists were gone by the time the government forces arrived. According to the United Nations peacekeeping mission, 43 people were killed in the attack, including 19 women and nine children, the BBC <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3ezjg34lw4o">reported</a>. The Congolese military said that the insurgents used machetes in their attack, adding, &#8220;These terrorists have decided to take revenge on defenseless peaceful populations to spread terror.&#8221;
The attack is yet another example of the extreme persecution faced by Christians at the hands of Islamic extremists in the Congo and other African nations. In February, 70 Christians were found <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/70-christians-beheaded-in-congo-church?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=70+Christians+Beheaded+In+Congo+Church">beheaded</a> in a church after they were attacked by militants with the Allied Democratic Forces. Last month, around 200 Christians in Nigeria were <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/terrible-massacre-hundreds-of-christians-killed-by-jihadists?author=Zach+Jewell&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=%E2%80%98Terrible+Massacre%E2%80%99%3A+Hundreds+Of+Christians+Killed+By+Jihadists">killed</a> by jihadists who stormed a predominantly Catholic farming community and set fire to homes.
Christian persecution in Africa receives little to no <a href="https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=a19e3038bac685ef&amp;rlz=1C5GCCM_en&amp;q=congo+christians+killed&amp;tbm=nws&amp;source=lnms&amp;fbs=AIIjpHxU7SXXniUZfeShr2fp4giZrjP_Cx0LI1Ytb_FGcOviEiTm5uW1q0uNfK7KsnoL8hUyUYUJLZ_b-p0lT09DIkR7RtNt-9R1f9Pbq4mdMMyxSelEHHADgzBCNx7-1ORi0KJWiwbiRKhaJlqpDHUl2dNr8G5XPk2ywt6RaMo8S7jdrN1-wsMK-NpRx3wHhwRUuCDXYdA01GXeONWxb0oGcT8AZCQ6oA&amp;sa=X&amp;ved=2ahUKEwjq1cau0-KOAxXnk2oFHV7JBBkQ0pQJegQIFRAB&amp;biw=1440&amp;bih=778&amp;dpr=2">coverage</a> in the legacy news media despite the constant threats and violence faced by people of faith. According to the Christian group <a href="https://www.opendoorsuk.org/news/latest-news/drc-attack-church/">Open Doors</a>, 355 Christians in the Congo were killed in 2024, an increase from 261 in 2023.
The Congo remains a completely volatile political landscape with factions and rebel groups fighting for control of multiple regions. The fighting has resulted in more than 100,000 Congolese people getting <a href="https://news.un.org/en/story/2025/02/1160006">displaced</a>, the United Nations reported in February.

Christians in Congo

Islamic Militants Slaughter Dozens Of Christians During Prayer Vigil

Christianity

Congo

Crime

Persecution

Radical Islamic Terror

New York City is not only poised to have its first Muslim mayor but also its first mayor who blatantly refuses to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggV2SeiGrVw">condemn</a> the widely used motto “Globalize the Intifada.”
When asked three times on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” the Ugandan-born, democratic socialist assemblyman from Queens, Zohran Mamdani, refused to condemn the appalling call for violence. This should, at the very least, be unsettling for New Yorkers and Americans alike.
Not only is the call for intifada a petition for violence, but it is also a call for the installation of Islamic rule. One of the tenets of the Intifada is the complete installation of Sharia Law. For those who care about human rights, few things should cause more concern than the implementation of Sharia Law. To put it mildly, Sharia Law’s track record on human rights is far from stellar. Nearly all of the 35 countries that have adopted Sharia Law are on the <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/map-shows-countries-human-rights-watchlist-us-2043007">Human Rights Watch list</a> at “closed” or “repressed” levels – the two most at-risk categories. Also, countries with Sharia law make up nearly half the countries designated as <a href="https://www.uscirf.gov/countries/2025-recommendations">“Countries of Particular Concern”</a> on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom’s list.
What’s even more alarming is the exponential growth of Sharia Law around the globe. In 1980, Saudi Arabia was the only country that officially applied Sharia Law. By 2000, that number had risen to 16. Currently, more than 35 of the 195 countries in the world have incorporated Sharia Law in their legal systems.
Sharia Law enforces Islamic principles in civil and criminal matters, guided by the subjective interpretations of the mostly male Islamic scholars (called Fiqhs), formalized through consensus (called Ijmas). It governs issues like apostasy, blasphemy, alcohol consumption, stealing, adultery, homosexuality, and forced marriages. Punishments, known as Hadud, vary but are severe in strict Quran-adhering regions and range from death for apostasy, blasphemy, or homosexuality; caning (often 40 lashes) for alcohol or drug use; hand amputation for theft; and stoning, flogging, or genital mutilation for other offenses.
These are the realities of Sharia Law when fully applied.
As the founder of <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/">a mission</a> working in the remote and dangerous <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/the-silent-slaughter-inside-nigerias-christian-persecution-crisis?author=Brad+Brandon&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=The+Silent+Slaughter%3A+Inside+Nigeria%E2%80%99s+Christian+Persecution+Crisis">northern region of Nigeria</a>, I have seen the horrific impacts Sharia Law has on people. I have spent nearly a third of my adult life in areas that impose strict interpretations of the Quran and regularly enforce the cruel punishments of Sharia Law.
Years ago, I saw a young man flogged 40 times in a village for using drugs, his guilt vaguely established. Sharia’s standards of proof are low compared to modern legal systems. Later, I met an older man with both hands amputated for stealing – once in his youth, then again while struggling with hunger, in a country where people barely earn enough money to feed themselves. Others I know face life in brutal prisons for apostasy or blasphemy. Sharia’s punishments – flogging, amputation, imprisonment – deliver severe consequences that should make anyone concerned about basic human rights shudder.
Sharia Law has little to no regard for human rights and almost never shows mercy to those who trespass its pretenses, including women and children.
Sharia Law’s emergence in states with rising Muslim populations, like my <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e6QC_qEyl0Q">home state of Minnesota</a>, worries me. In the U.S., Sharia currently operates through local councils that mediate disputes and personal matters within Muslim communities, always under state and federal laws.
Yet, challenges arise. In 2009, New Jersey Superior Court Judge Joseph Charles relied on a <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/advocates-of-anti-shariah-measures-alarmed-by-judges-ruling">family’s Imam</a> in a spousal abuse case, denying the woman a protective order. Though an appellate court overturned the ruling, this case reveals Sharia’s potential to influence U.S. legal systems, extending beyond community guidelines and testing national authority.
In Europe, there is no greater example of Sharia Law’s infiltration than in the United Kingdom. The U.K. is now being called the <a href="https://www.gbnews.com/news/britain-sharia-law-courts-western-capital">“western capital” of Sharia Law</a>, with more than 85 “councils” operating across the country. These Islamic councils have become a blatant assault on human rights, particularly against women and children. Under Sharia Law, a woman’s testimony is worth half of a man’s. This discrimination has far-reaching effects in matters of spousal abuse, divorce, child custody, and financial matters just to name a few. According to these Sharia councils, a woman’s right to divorce is heavily restricted, whereas a man’s right to divorce is unilateral. These kinds of discrimination are illegal in the government and workplaces in the U.K. But when it comes to Sharia Law they are promoted.
The most alarming aspect of this is that under the <a href="https://lawandreligionuk.com/2012/10/24/sharia-law-the-arbitration-act-1996-and-the-arbitration-and-mediation-services-equality-bill/">U.K.’s Arbitration Act</a>, the rulings of these Sharia councils are precedent rulings and are being used in the British courts. This is happening across Europe. In so much that the Council of Europe has <a href="https://eclj.org/religious-freedom/pace/le-conseil-de-leurope-sinquite-grandement-de-lapplication-de-la-charia-en-europe?lng=en">issued a report </a>stating they are “greatly concerned” by the application of Sharia Law in Europe, specifically listing the U.K., Greece, Germany, and Chechnya. This imposition of Sharia Law has even created enough concern in the U.S. that <a href="https://www.mapsofworld.com/answers/united-states/states-outlawed-sharia-law/">16 states have passed legislation banning Sharia Law,</a> and more than two dozen have anti-Sharia bills introduced.
It&#8217;s not hyperbole or hysterics to be concerned about the imposition of Sharia Law and its inhumane practices in the United States. All one has to do is look at the scores of Western countries that have opened the door to it. In every case, human rights are being trampled and disregarded. It’s not at all unreasonable for every American to be concerned when the Democratic nominee of the nation’s largest city is a man who will not condemn the idea of a global intifada and its assault on human rights through the spread of Sharia Law.
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<a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/ourfounder" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brad Brandon</a> is the founder and CEO of <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Across Nigeria</a>. Since 2018, he has been actively serving in predominantly high-risk, highly persecuted areas like Northern Nigeria and other parts of West Africa.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

Lantern that have moon symbol on top with blurred focus of paper cut for mosque shape background.

The Global Rise Of Sharia Law And Mamdani’s ‘Intifada’ Silence

The Global Rise Of Sharia Law And Mamdani’s 'Intifada' Silence

Europe

New York City

Sharia Law

United Kingdom

New York City&#8217;s Democratic Mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani does not consider himself to be black — but that did not stop him from checking the &#8220;African-American&#8221; box in addition to the &#8220;Asian&#8221; box on his application to attend Columbia University.
The New York Times revealed the information — discovered through a hack of the university and then shared with the outlet — in a <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/03/nyregion/mamdani-columbia-black-application.html?unlocked_article_code=1.Tk8.dq-_.OgG4Ktak82Hp&amp;smid=url-share">report</a> published on Thursday afternoon, just ahead of the July 4th holiday weekend.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
GIFT LINK: SCOOP: Mamdani Identified as Asian and African American on College Application
I report with <a href="https://twitter.com/danarubinstein?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DanaRubinstein</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/npfandos?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NPFandos</a> for <a href="https://twitter.com/nytimes?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NYTimes</a><a href="https://t.co/pV7xvNYprB">https://t.co/pV7xvNYprB</a>
&mdash; Benjamin Ryan (@benryanwriter) <a href="https://twitter.com/benryanwriter/status/1940887033804624378?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 3, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Though both of his parents are of Indian descent, Mamdani was born in Uganda and spent his early childhood there. He has said that he considers himself &#8220;an American who was born in Africa,&#8221; not black or African American — and instead, he has leaned in to his South Asian ancestry and his Muslim faith.
&#8220;As the first South Asian elected official, the first Muslim elected official to ever run for mayor, the turnout in those same communities has been incredible to see,&#8221; he said after besting disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo in the primary.
<a class="c-link" href="https://get.dailywire.com/freedom/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=freedom&amp;utm_content=freedomeditorial" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-stringify-link="https://get.dailywire.com/freedom/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=freedom&amp;utm_content=freedomeditorial" data-sk="tooltip_parent" aria-describedby="sk-tooltip-2388">JULY 4 SALE: Get Six Months Of DW+ Free</a>
But, as the hacked data revealed, he did consider himself African American for the purpose of his application to Columbia — and he admitted he&#8217;d done the same on other college applications. His explanation was that the available selections did not paint a complete picture of who he was.
&#8220;Most college applications don’t have a box for Indian-Ugandans, so I checked multiple boxes trying to capture the fullness of my background,” he said. “Even though these boxes are constraining, I wanted my college application to reflect who I was.&#8221;
The Times even appeared to cast doubt on Mamdani&#8217;s motivation:
<blockquote>Columbia, like many elite universities, used a race-conscious affirmative action admissions program at the time. Reporting that his race was Black or African American in addition to Asian could have given an advantage to Mr. Mamdani, who was born in Uganda and spent his earliest years there.</blockquote>
In addition, the Times pressed Mamdani on whether he&#8217;d ever identified as African American on any other occasion: &#8220;The Times could not find any speeches or interviews in which Mr. Mamdani referred to himself as Black or African American.&#8221; Mamdani said that outside of college applications, he could not recall ever doing so.

New York City Mayoral Candidates Campaign Ahead Of Primary Election

Mamdani Said He Was ‘African American’ On Columbia University Application

Mamdani Said He Was 'African American' On Columbia University Application

Elections

Politics

Uganda

Zohran Mamdani

A Washington, D.C., judge on Tuesday said President Donald Trump did not have the authority to name the leader of a small, USAID-like agency after an African company sued, citing the hardship of having to lay off its workers.
Judge Richard J. Leon ruled that Trump appointee Pete Marocco, who oversaw the demolition of USAID, was not validly appointed to the African Development Foundation, where he played a similar role, and, therefore, had no authority to terminate grants.
The ruling came in response to a lawsuit brought by a consulting firm in Zambia, called Rural Development Innovations Limited, represented by lawyers from the left-wing American group Democracy Forward.
Trump fired the entirety of the African Development Foundation&#8217;s board, and the agency locked its doors to prevent Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employees from gaining access to its books. One of the fired board members sued, but Judge Leon tossed that lawsuit, affirming that the president had the right to fire board members.
In this second lawsuit, though, Leon indicated that Trump likely did not have the power to determine who runs the agency in the board members&#8217; absence. Under the legislation establishing the Foundation, the president nominates board members, but they must be confirmed by the Senate.
Marocco had been named &#8220;acting&#8221; chairman of the board. The chief role of the board is to appoint a president who runs day-to-day operations, and Marocco appointed himself.
The Trump administration <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789.12.0.pdf">argued</a> that &#8220;because the Federal Vacancies Act does not apply to the Foundation, the President has the inherent authority under Article II of the Constitution to designate acting members of the Foundation Board until the Senate confirms his nominees to fill full terms&#8230; The President must be able to designate acting officials to fulfill his duty.&#8221;
It is unclear how Leon believes the management of the federal agency should be chosen, since he acknowledges that the agency has no board. The African Development Foundation&#8217;s previous president, Travis Adkins, who was accused of anti-white racism and abuse of employees, resigned before the DOGE takeover.
After Adkins&#8217;s resignation, the role was filled by a committee of the agency&#8217;s three top employees, including Chief Financial Officer Mathieu Zahui. The USAID inspector general presented evidence in court in November 2024 that Zahui steered contracts to a friend in exchange for kickbacks, but he has so far not been criminally charged.
If the group&#8217;s staff is reinstated and its top management structure restored, that would put the subject of a criminal investigation in charge of an agency, instead of the president&#8217;s appointee.
Rural Development Innovations Limited &#8220;offers clients broad expertise in financial management, enterprise development, organizational capacity development, strategy development and implementation, project management, marketing and market access development,&#8221; its lawyers <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789.1.0_1.pdf">wrote</a>.
Yet it doesn&#8217;t actually have any clients except the United States government. They added: &#8220;RDI receives 100% of its funding from USADF and has been awarded a USADF grant that continues through 2028. Yet in April 2025, RDI received notice from Pete Marocco that its grant was being terminated immediately because RDI somehow no longer satisfied USADF’s priorities. As a result, RDI will be forced to shut down entirely by the end of June 2025.&#8221;
Judge Leon wrote that &#8220;RDI has shown irreparable injury&#8230; Traditionally, &#8216;economic loss does not, in and of itself constitute irreparable harm,'&#8221; but an &#8220;exception exists when &#8216;the loss threatens the very existence of the movant&#8217;s business.&#8221; That exception applied because RDI had no customers other than the United States government. RDI argued that America had an obligation not to terminate its funding because Zambian law requires the payment of severance to laid-off employees, which it could not afford to do.
Two African Development Foundation employees were also plaintiffs in the lawsuit. But, unlike the African company, the American workers had no recourse, the judge <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789.26.0.pdf">ruled</a>.
Leon wrote that &#8220;RDI requests that the Court preliminarily enjoin all defendants&#8211;including the President of the United States.&#8221; The court does not have the power to enjoin the president, he wrote, but the <a href="https://storage.courtlistener.com/recap/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789/gov.uscourts.dcd.280789.27.0.pdf">injunction</a> blocks Marocco &#8220;from taking actions as the acting chairperson of the United States African Development Foundation&#8217;s board of directors and president,&#8221; and White House, Treasury, and Department of Government Efficiency officials, from &#8220;implementing or giving effect to directives from Marocco.&#8221;
An injunction is a temporary order that gives relief to one side while a final resolution is pending. It is given when the judge believes a party is likely to win the case and will suffer harm in the meantime if it has to wait months.
Typically, a party seeking an injunction is supposed to post a monetary bond that would be used to compensate the opposing party if that party ultimately wins the case. The Trump administration has highlighted the role that such bonds would play in preventing groups from seeking endless injunctions by giving them skin in the game.
But courts have &#8220;discretion&#8230;to determine the appropriate amount of an injunction bond,&#8221; Judge Leon wrote, and he would require no bond at all from the African group, since the Trump administration has &#8220;not argued that they will suffer monetary loss if the Court were to issue an injunction.&#8221;
A four-part Daily Wire series documented significant ethical and financial problems at the African Development Foundation, which former employees said was likely the reason it was so opposed to scrutiny by DOGE:
PART ONE: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/foreign-aid-official-who-resisted-doge-took-secret-payments-after-steering-africa-money-to-friend?author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Foreign+Aid+Official+Who+Resisted+DOGE+Took+Secret+Payments+After+Steering+Africa+Money+To+Friend%C2%A0">Foreign Aid Official Who Resisted DOGE Took Secret Payments After Steering Africa Money To Friend </a>
PART TWO: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/african-aid-agency-used-foreign-pass-throughs-to-hide-money-that-went-to-d-c-staff-friends?author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=African+Aid+Agency+Used+Foreign+Pass-Throughs+To+Hide+Money+That+Went+To+D.C.+Staff%2C+Friends" target="_blank" rel="noopener">African Aid Agency Used Foreign Pass-Throughs To Hide Money That Went To D.C. Staff</a>
PART THREE: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/aid-agency-pushed-officials-for-profit-pyramid-scheme-on-poor-africans?author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Aid+Agency+Pushed+Official%E2%80%99s+For-Profit+Pyramid+Scheme+On+Poor+Africans" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aid Agency Pushed Official’s For-Profit Pyramid Scheme On Poor Africans</a>
PART FOUR: <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/them-white-motherf-ers-racist-agency-framed-its-lawyer-after-he-discovered-lawbreaking-he-says?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=Investigation&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=%E2%80%98Them+White+Motherf-ers%E2%80%99%3A+Racist+Agency+Framed+Its+Lawyer+After+He+Discovered+Lawbreaking%2C+He+Says" target="_blank" rel="noopener">‘Them White Motherf-ers’: Racist Agency Framed Its Lawyer After He Discovered Lawbreaking, He Says</a>

Mathieu Zahui, chief financial officer of the African Development Foundation

Judge Orders Foreign Aid Agency Resurrected After African Company Sues

Judges

USAID

Over the past 10 years, Northern Nigeria has quickly risen to the top of the list as the most dangerous place to be a Christian. More Christians are killed here than anywhere else in the world.
The data show us that it’s not by slim margins. According to International Christian Concern, in 2022, <a href="https://www.persecution.org/2023/09/11/90-percent-of-the-5500-christians-killed-in-2022-were-nigerian/">90%</a> of all Christians killed in the world were killed in Nigeria. Last year, that number was around <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/261571/nigeria-tops-report-for-number-of-christians-killed-kidnapped-in-2024#:~:text=The%20World%20Watch%20List%2C%20released,countries%20in%20the%20same%20year.">70%</a>.
The persecution of Christians in Northern Nigeria has quickly evolved into a full-on genocide. But how did this happen? How did the region become a stronghold for this violence against those who follow Christ?
Most of the region is a virtual “wild west” of Africa, leaving Northern Nigeria largely unchecked with a sparse military presence. The geography, coupled with a rise in Islamic extremism, has allowed groups like Boko Haram and ISIS-WA (ISWAP) to flourish unimpeded.
<div id="attachment_74449" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-74449" class="wp-image-74449 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/12/ISIS-Truck-1024x576.jpg" alt="A vehicle allegedly belonging to the Islamic State group in West Africa (ISWAP) is seen in Baga on August 2, 2019. - Intense fighting between a regional force and the Islamic State group in West Africa (ISWAP) has resulted in dozens of deaths, including at least 25 soldiers and more than 40 jihadists, in northeastern Nigeria. ISWAP broke away from Boko Haram in 2016 in part due to its rejection of indiscriminate attacks on civilians. Last year the group witnessed a reported takeover by more hardline fighters who sidelined its leader and executed his deputy. The IS-affiliate has since July 2018 ratcheted up a campaign of attacks against military targets." width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/12/ISIS-Truck-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/12/ISIS-Truck-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2019/12/ISIS-Truck-768x432.jpg 768w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />A vehicle allegedly belonging to the Islamic State group in West Africa (ISWAP) is seen in Baga on August 2, 2019. AUDU MARTE/AFP via Getty Images</div>
According to the most <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/1197570/deaths-caused-by-boko-haram-in-nigeria/">recent statistics</a>, Boko Haram alone is responsible for the deaths of 38,000 people between 2011 and 2023. Their growth has been so staggering that it has essentially overwhelmed the Nigerian government’s attempts to stop it. In 2023, I witnessed Nigerian soldiers walk off the job when ordered to fight Boko Haram militants. They told me that fighting Boko Haram was a suicide mission. These terrorist groups keep the people of northern Nigeria in a constant state of fear. They yield this fear skillfully to maintain control. While I truly believe Nigerian President Bola Tinubu wants to see change in the region, his government is outnumbered and outgunned.
Another equally devastating contributor to the problem is the ethnic conflict between Fulani Muslims (herders) and Christians (farmers). While this is not “terrorism” in the traditional sense of Islamic Jihad, the results are no less deadly. There are approximately 17 million Fulani Muslims in Nigeria. Most Fulani are nomadic and predominantly raise cattle to maintain their livelihood. In this region, Christians have largely settled and sustain themselves by planting crops. As the Fulani migrate their cattle over vast distances, those cattle often wander into the farm fields of Christians, destroying their crops. While some Fulani Muslims have been radicalized, the herder vs. farmer crisis is overwhelmingly the result of tensions over land.
<div id="attachment_939751" style="width: 874px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-939751" class="size-large wp-image-939751" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-1257123144-864x576.jpg" alt="TOPSHOT - A Fulani pastoralist rests at a water point in Loumbel Lana, Matam region on May 19, 2023. For pastoralist the extreme heats direct effect is that their livestock drink double what they usually do. Usually one sheep will drink around 2,5 litres of water a day, now they need 4 or 5 litres a day. Pastoralists now need to get to water points multiple times a day (up to 20km away) and spend double the money buying water. Since April the region of Matam has regularly been flagged as the hottest place on earth with temperatures reaching 48 degrees celsius in the shade and fifties in direct sun. (Photo by JOHN WESSELS / AFP) (Photo by JOHN WESSELS/AFP via Getty Images)" width="864" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-1257123144-864x576.jpg 864w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-1257123144-300x200.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-1257123144-768x512.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/06/GettyImages-1257123144.jpg 1024w" sizes=" (max-width: 864px) 100vw, 864px" />JOHN WESSELS/AFP via Getty Images</div>
For years, I have brokered peace agreements between hundreds of Fulani Muslim and Christian communities. In nearly every case I have worked, the root cause of the conflict boils down to violence that arose from cattle destroying crops. And that violence is not one-sided. Christians have retaliated for the destruction of their crops; however, more often than not, these conflicts result in an inordinate number of Christian deaths.
The most recent example is the massacre of nearly <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/terrible-massacre-hundreds-of-christians-killed-by-jihadists">200 Christians</a> that happened on <a href="https://www.genocidewatch.com/single-post/fulani-jihadists-massacre-over-200-christians-in-nigeria">June 14, 2025</a>. As a result of Nigeria’s diminishing areas for cattle grazing, the Fulani Muslims attacked Christians as a means to claim land for their cattle to graze. Further evidence is that every dry season, when access to good feeding grounds is at its lowest, there is a surge of violence between the Fulani herders and Christian farmers.
Northern Nigeria, like much of Africa, is gripped by severe socio-economic challenges that fuel instability and hardship. Most people in Northern Nigeria live on the equivalent of a little more than <a href="https://www.forbesafrica.com/current-affairs/2024/08/20/majority-of-workers-in-nigerias-largest-city-earn-below-62-50-monthly-report-reveals/">$1 USD per day</a>. Currently, a <a href="https://maypatronic.com/bag-of-rice-in-nigeria/#:~:text=in%20the%20market.-,Price%20Ranges,such%20as%20region%20and%20quality.">10kg (22-pound) bag of rice costs about $35 USD</a>. People barely earn enough to feed themselves. The <a href="https://www.macrotrends.net/global-metrics/countries/nga/nigeria/inflation-rate-cpi#:~:text=Nigeria%20inflation%20rate%20for%202023,a%201.85%25%20increase%20from%202019.">annual inflation rate is around 24%</a>, which drives the cost of food higher and higher. <a href="https://www.unicef.org/press-releases/25-million-nigerians-high-risk-food-insecurity-2023">UNICEF has placed Nigeria on its crisis list</a>, stating that over 25 million people are at high risk of food insecurity. These conditions have created an environment that keeps people in a perpetual state of survival.
But how do dire socio-economic conditions contribute to Christian persecution?
<div id="attachment_168513" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-168513" class="wp-image-168513 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2020/11/BH-1024x576.jpg" alt="TOPSHOT - Mourners attend the funeral of 43 farm workers in Zabarmari, about 20km from Maiduguri, Nigeria, on November 29, 2020 after they were killed by Boko Haram fighters in rice fields near the village of Koshobe on November 28, 2020. - The assailants tied up the agricultural workers and slit their throats in the village of Koshobe. The victims were labourers from Sokoto state in northwest Nigeria, roughly 1,000 kilometres (600 miles) away, who had travelled to the northeast to find work." width="1024" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2020/11/BH-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2020/11/BH-300x169.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2020/11/BH-768x432.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2020/11/BH-1536x864.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2020/11/BH-2048x1152.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />TOPSHOT &#8211; Mourners attend the funeral of 43 farm workers in Zabarmari, about 20km from Maiduguri, Nigeria, on November 29, 2020 after they were killed by Boko Haram fighters. AUDU MARTE/AFP via Getty Images.</div>
Inflation and food shortages exacerbate the conflict between Fulani Muslim herders and Christian farmers because, to them, every day is a desperate fight for survival. Tensions over grazing land — the source of sustenance for both the herders and farmers — run at a fever pitch. These socio-economic conditions are also the reason why so many young men are drawn to radical Islamic groups like Boko Haram and ISWAP. Not only do these groups provide a support system, but they also pay well for people willing to follow their orders and commit violent acts. I’ve heard reports of Boko Haram paying their fighters $100 USD for the successful execution of a single act of terrorism. That’s a small fortune in this part of the world.
The desperate conditions of Northern Nigeria are the fuel that keeps the fire of persecution burning.
These are complex problems in a complex part of the world. That’s why, at <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/">Across Nigeria</a>, we are driven by a powerful mission: not only to uplift suffering Christians but also to extend Christ’s love to Muslims. Through our network of primary schools across Northern Nigeria, we empower Fulani Muslims with transformative education and literacy, building bridges of hope and understanding. In every area where we operate a Fulani school, the violence has dropped by 60 to 70%. We have found that providing people with options and opportunities is the best way to deter them from resorting to violence.
By helping Muslims overcome these challenges, we are helping to significantly reduce the violence and bring an end to the suffering. We have done a lot, but we have a long way to go. With the proper support, I believe we can reduce the violence and bring an end to suffering for the Muslims and Christians in the most dangerous region in the world.
* * *
<a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/ourfounder">Brad Brandon</a> is the founder and CEO of <a href="https://www.acrossnigeria.org/">Across Nigeria</a>. Since 2018, he has been actively serving in predominantly high-risk, highly persecuted areas like Northern Nigeria and other parts of West Africa.
The views expressed in this piece are those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

NIGERIA-VATICAN-RELIGION-POPE-AFRICA

The Silent Slaughter: Inside Nigeria’s Christian Persecution Crisis

The Silent Slaughter: Inside Nigeria's Christian Persecution Crisis

Bible

Murder

President Donald Trump defended Afrikaner farmers during an Oval Office meeting today with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, playing a video of alleged incitements to violence after Ramaphosa rejected claims of a white genocide.
The video included a clip of Julius Malema, a member of South Africa’s National Assembly, singing “Kill the Boer” at a political rally, a reference to Afrikaners.
While the video played, Ramaphosa looked away from the screen, visibly uncomfortable, while Trump looked straight on.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
President Trump directly accused South African President Cyril Ramaphosa of an Afrikaner genocide.
When Ramaphosa denied the claim, Trump played a video showing anti-Afrikaner speeches and footage of white farmers&#39; burial sites. <a href="https://t.co/IgDXz1vJKQ">pic.twitter.com/IgDXz1vJKQ</a>
&mdash; Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) <a href="https://twitter.com/KassyAkiva/status/1925237856747831419?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The video also included footage of what Trump claimed was the gravesite of 1,000 Afrikaner farmers.
Ramaphosa said he had never seen the site but “would like to know where that is.”
Trump also held up articles that he said showed proof of the genocide against Afrikaners.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/how-trump-and-rubio-put-america-first-in-100-days?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=How+Trump+And+Rubio+Put+America+First+In+100+Days" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HOW TRUMP AND RUBIO PUT AMERICA FIRST IN 100 DAYS</a>
“I don’t know how it can get any worse,” Trump said.
Ramaphosa responded to Trump, raising concerns about the “Kill the Boer” chant, claiming that it was said by a minority party and was not representative of the government.
“When they take the land, they kill the white farmer, and when they kill the white farmer, nothing happens to them,” Trump said. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
President Trump arguing with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa about the genocide of White farmers.
&quot;The farmers are not black,” Trump said. <a href="https://t.co/3kt5vbAIUc">pic.twitter.com/3kt5vbAIUc</a>
&mdash; Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) <a href="https://twitter.com/KassyAkiva/status/1925239960199684523?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2025</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Ramaphosa responded, claiming that black people are also killed by criminals in the country.
“The farmers are not black,” Trump said. “The people that are being killed in large numbers, and you saw those grave sites and those are people that loved ones are going on a Sunday morning they told me to pay their respects to their loved ones that were killed. Their heads chopped off. They died violently.”
Ramaphosa, being diplomatic, asked to discuss the “criminality” issues in South Africa outside of the media and encouraged American partnership in addressing them.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/homeland-security-to-screen-immigrants-and-foreign-students-social-media-for-anti-semitism?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=29&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Homeland+Security+To+Screen+Immigrants+And+Foreign+Students%E2%80%99+Social+Media+For+Anti-Semitism" target="_blank" rel="noopener">HOMELAND SECURITY TO SCREEN IMMIGRANTS AND FOREIGN STUDENTS’ SOCIAL MEDIA FOR ANTI-SEMITISM</a>
The meeting comes amid controversy over the Trump administration welcoming Afrikaner refugees to the United States, alleging they are the victims of a race-based genocide. 
Tensions between the two countries have increased following the passage of South Africa’s Expropriation Act, which allows the South African government to confiscate land without compensation.
<a href="https://get.dailywire.com/subscribe/plus/?utm_medium=website&amp;utm_source=editorial&amp;utm_campaign=memorial&amp;utm_content=editorialmemorialday" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Memorial Day Sale – Get 40% Off New DailyWire+ Annual Memberships</a>
Trump issued an executive order in February saying the act ignored citizens’ rights and enabled the government to “seize ethnic minority Afrikaners’ agricultural property without compensation.” The directive cut aid or assistance to South Africa and declared that the United States would promote resettling Afrikaner refugees.
Ramaphosa denied that Afrikaner land is being taken away during the meeting. He pointed to his South African Agriculture Minister, John Steenhuisen, who is white, and claimed that the majority of white farmers want to stay. 
Steenhuisen said he joined Ramaphosa’s coalition government as an opposition party to keep the anti-white politicians out of power in South Africa.
“Why wouldn’t you arrest that man?” Trump asked, pointing out that Malema was inciting violence by calling for white people to be killed.
<a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/deals-and-diplomacy-heres-everything-trump-accomplished-on-his-gulf-tour?author=Kassy+Akiva&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Deals+And+Diplomacy%3A+Here%E2%80%99s+Everything+Trump+Accomplished+On+His+Gulf+Tour" target="_blank" rel="noopener">DEALS AND DIPLOMACY: HERE’S EVERYTHING TRUMP ACCOMPLISHED ON HIS GULF TOUR</a>
The Trump administration accepted 59 farmers who arrived in the United States on a chartered flight earlier this month through an expedited program. Democrats <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rubio-says-dem-senator-only-opposes-afrikaner-refugees-because-of-their-race">have denied</a> that Afrikaners are being persecuted for their race and have criticized the Trump administration for resettling the refugees in the United States.
Trump pushed back on those criticisms last week, <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-rips-critics-of-south-african-refugee-policy-its-a-terrible-thing-thats-taking-place?author=Tim+Pearce&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=undefined&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Rips+Critics+Of+South+African+Refugee+Policy%3A+%E2%80%98It%E2%80%99s+A+Terrible+Thing+That%E2%80%99s+Taking+Place%E2%80%99">saying</a> the refugees “happen to be white, but whether they’re white or black makes no difference to me.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio doubled down on the Trump administration’s belief that Afrikaners are being persecuted during a Senate hearing on Wednesday.
“These are people whose farms were burned down and they were killed because of the color of their skin,” Rubio said in a heated exchange with Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA).
Rubio added that the farmers qualify for refugee status because they “live in a country where farms are taken and land is taken on a racial basis.”

President Trump Meets With South African President Cyril Ramaphosa At The White House

Trump Confronts South African President In Oval Office Over White Farmer Genocide

Donald Trump

Executive

Global Politics

Racism

South Africa

African Development Foundation locked the doors when DOGE tried to gain access

This Foreign Aid Agency Locked Its Doors To Keep DOGE Out. Now We Know Why.

Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)

Foreign Funding

This is the fourth and final part in a series of investigative reports on the African Development Foundation, which gained notoriety for resisting a review by the Department of Government Efficiency. Check out <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/foreign-aid-official-who-resisted-doge-took-secret-payments-after-steering-africa-money-to-friend?author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Foreign+Aid+Official+Who+Resisted+DOGE+Took+Secret+Payments+After+Steering+Africa+Money+To+Friend%C2%A0">part one,</a> <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/african-aid-agency-used-foreign-pass-throughs-to-hide-money-that-went-to-d-c-staff-friends">part two,</a> and <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/aid-agency-pushed-officials-for-profit-pyramid-scheme-on-poor-africans?author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Aid+Agency+Pushed+Official%E2%80%99s+For-Profit+Pyramid+Scheme+On+Poor+Africans">part three</a>.
—
A small, USAID-like federal agency called the African Development Foundation refused to hire white people, and treated white employees who did slip through so poorly that one soiled herself because she was afraid to leave her desk to use the bathroom, employees told The Daily Wire.
The agency violated so many rules and laws that its general counsel was flabbergasted — but when he called attention to it, officials framed him for violent threats and removed him from his job with a bizarre manifesto that called him “grimy” and “unwholesome,” the general counsel, Mateo Dunne, who is white, said.
The agency attracted attention by locking the doors to prevent auditors from the Department of Government Efficiency from seeing its books, and suing Elon Musk to prevent a takeover. The lawsuit is pending, but all of its employees have been laid off after the Trump administration gained access to the office space using U.S. Marshals.
From 2021 until February, the agency was led by CEO Travis Adkins, who came to it after a short stint at USAID as a Joe Biden political appointee.
Adkins’ former assistant, who is black, said in a sworn affidavit that “On at least three occasions, Mr. Adkins told me that he wanted his entire team (to include the General Counsel) to consist only of Black people. He wanted all of his direct reports to be Black.”
“He was very adamant in only hiring African Americans, mainly female, and he told me many times he would not hire a white person or a veteran. I said that’s discrimination, and he said ‘I’m the president and CEO, I can do what I want,’” the assistant told The Daily Wire on condition of anonymity. Adkins is also a lecturer at Georgetown University.
The African Development Foundation was created by Congress in 1980 as a board whose members are appointed by the president of the United States to six-year terms, who in turn appoint a CEO to run day-to-day operations. The board chair was Jack Leslie, a white former staffer to former Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) who was appointed to the board by Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.
Adkins bragged about concealing operations from the board, saying “them white motherf&#8212;ers, they don’t need to know… I don’t think I should tell them sh&#8211;,” according to the assistant.
A junior employee disappeared a few months after she took complaints to the board, and the assistant asked what happened to her; Adkins replied, “I just put the white b&#8212;h on a contract and then the contract ended,” the assistant said.
The situation was the same under the prior CEO, C.D. Glin, a former Peace Corps DEI officer and later an Obama political appointee to the Peace Corps who led the agency from 2016 to 2021. “C.D. [Glin] literally said to me that he needed to hire black people,” another employee told The Daily Wire on condition of anonymity. “Virtually everyone he hired in programs was black.”
In 2021, the agency had to pay a settlement after it laid off a white senior executive without paying her severance or following federal rules, and she alleged it was because of her race. It conducted a “reduction in force” that was targeted at her, and falsely claimed she didn’t have the qualifications to shift into another job, even though many of those jobs had actually reported to her.
After publication of this article, a representative for Adkins disputed the allegations from his former assistant that he didn&#8217;t want to hire white people. The representative characterizes Dunne&#8217;s claims about Adkins as both &#8220;self-serving&#8221; and &#8220;discredited.&#8221;
In previous installments in this series, The Daily Wire reported how its agency&#8217;s CFO received payments to his personal bank account from a company to which he steered $1 million. The agency gave money to African grantees and then instructed them to re-route it to the agency&#8217;s employees and friends in America, and even pushed a for-profit multi-level marketing scheme run by a board member on poor Africans.
<blockquote>
<h1>&#8220;I think USADF deserved the fate that it received, because if it couldn’t be run correctly, then it shouldn’t be run at all.&#8221;</h1>
</blockquote>
<h3>Retaliation</h3>
In a government agency, the job of the general counsel is to ensure that rules and laws are followed. Glin ensured that the role was either empty or filled with junior lawyers with no experience in government, even though the agency engaged in complex international finance.
After he departed as CEO in May 2021, there was a brief period in which the agency had no permanent leader, and a traditional general counsel managed to slip through. When Mateo Dunne, a white former high-level Defense Department executive, took the job, he was appalled by how little the African Development Foundation seemed to care about laws and rules.
The lawyer set out to interview employees about conflicts of interest, purchase card abuse, contracting fraud, and a toxic workplace environment. In a matter of days, the evidence started stacking up. He told the acting CEO, Elisabeth Feleke, that outside lawyers would have to be brought in to document the full scope of the lawbreaking.
Instead, Feleke ordered him to stop the investigation, told him to change the preliminary findings, and falsely told the board the probe was complete, he told The Daily Wire. Dunne stopped investigating, but sent his preliminary report to the board.
He soon learned that despite nearly uniform agreement that Glin had been abusive, the organization wasn’t getting a fresh start. The board agreed to hire a decades-long friend of Glin’s, Travis Adkins, to replace him. When Adkins entered the office for the first time, Glin enveloped him in a bear hug.
Adkins later testified under oath that he was selected to lead the African Development Foundation without even applying for the job, and that he couldn’t recall when or how he managed to be selected.
As Adkins’ start date neared, Dunne prepared to show him the lawbreaking he had found so that Adkins could reform the agency. But it seemed that Adkins already knew, and his first priority was shutting Dunne’s investigation down.
Within hours of Adkins being sworn in as president and CEO in January 2022, he put Dunne on leave and cut off his access to evidence before he could even speak, video shows.
“You will be on administrative leave the very moment that we hang up this call. You will have a box mailed to your home to allow you to send back to us any USADF-issued equipment,” he told Dunne. “You are not to contact any of the members of the USADF staff. And again, your access to all of our data and systems will be closed down immediately.”
Dunne replied: “I had prepared this slide deck to introduce myself and what I’ve done at USADF. This conversation obviously went a different way … I guess I have a couple of questions.”
“We’re not going to do questions and answers,” Adkins said. “We’re not going to have a back and forth about this.” Dunne was never told why he was placed on paid leave, which Adkins acknowledged was the first step in a discipline process.
Internally, the agency sought to build a justification for firing the white lawyer, with chief of staff Brandi James compiling a 75-page manifesto that called Dunne “Adversarial, Belittling, Calculating, Combative, Condescending, Deceitful, Defensive, Grimy, Sinister, and Unwholesome.”
The report called Dunne a “danger to USADF’s mission and staff.” But the details made clear that the risk was not to anyone’s life, but rather the livelihoods of law-breaking bureaucrats. The dossier faulted him for his “insistence on tying up staff time on investigatory digs.”
The evidence of insubordination was that he had investigated apparent spending on luxuries and personal items by top staff, when Acting CEO Elisabeth Feleke said, “I have not given Mateo direction or mandate to investigate credit card fraud.”
<blockquote>
<h1>&#8220;Them white motherf&#8212;ers, they don’t need to know… I don’t think I should tell them sh&#8211;.&#8221;</h1>
</blockquote>
As evidence of Dunne “circumventing and breaching USADF protocols,” the dossier complained that Dunne notified Glin that he had not filed years&#8217; worth of mandatory Office of Government Ethics conflict-of-interest forms, carrying a $600 penalty, even though Feleke told him not to raise the issue. As general counsel, Dunne was the agency’s “designated ethics officer” and required to do so by the government-wide ethics office. The forms would have revealed that the African group had paid money to a group associated with Glin, and refusal to file them can carry criminal penalties.
Adkins went as far as implying that Dunne had threatened to kill him, alluding to something “being sent to people regarding the death of government officials, as all of us are government officials.” This, it turned out, was a fantastical distortion of Dunne sharing a sentimental quote from a New York governor acknowledging the passing of a former legislator.
Then a new comment appeared on the agency’s profile on the employer-review site GlassDoor that said, under “Advice to Management”: “die.” The post was attributed to “General Counsel.” The African Development Foundation sicced four different law enforcement agencies on Dunne for making death threats.
The former Sunday school-teaching lawyer said he was framed. “If I was going to do an anonymous post I would obviously not put my job title in there,&#8221; he said.
Adkins was forthright with the board’s chair, Jack Leslie, about what was really going on. He wrote to Leslie that Dunne was placed on leave for his “efforts to damage USADF’s reputation via the Office of Inspector General…Dunne conducted an unauthorized, backward-focused investigation that unsettled staff. &#8230; He then began leveling accusations that USADF senior leadership was ‘interfering’ with his investigations and General Counsel functions.”
<h3>Lies </h3>
The African Development Foundation never told Dunne what he was being investigated for, or formally moved to fire him, which would require proving that he did something wrong. It simply left him on paid leave indefinitely, violating a <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/5/6329b" target="_blank" rel="noopener">law</a> that limits investigative leave to 90 days. After six months, in July 2022, he quit to take another job.
An agency’s top lawyer calling attention to rampant lawbreaking, only for him to be removed from duty, is as remarkable a case of whistleblower retaliation as the government has seen. Dunne provided documentation to the Office of Special Counsel, which exists to investigate whistleblower retaliation. But it closed his file when the employee he’d been working with left her job, he said.
He filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging discrimination on the basis of his race and retaliation. In August 2024, an administrative law judge dismissed his case, even though he had an affidavit from a black employee saying that Adkins had told her repeatedly that he did not want any white people working for him. Dunne is appealing in court.
Dunne deposed African Development Foundation staff in the course of that lawsuit. In his sworn testimony, Adkins denied saying he wouldn’t hire white people — but also claimed he didn’t know how many people worked for him, that he could only remember the names of two, and that he didn’t know what race various employees were.
<div id="attachment_918261" style="width: 746px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-918261" class="size-large wp-image-918261" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/adkins-dep-736x576.jpg" alt="" width="736" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/adkins-dep-736x576.jpg 736w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/adkins-dep-300x235.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/adkins-dep-768x601.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/adkins-dep.jpg 1184w" sizes=" (max-width: 736px) 100vw, 736px" />A typical exchange from Adkins’ deposition</div>
Adkins’ sworn testimony was repeatedly contradicted by documents and the testimony of other employees.
Adkins had told the board that a government-wide human resource office had “recommended Mr. Dunne immediately be placed on Administrative Leave for misconduct and performance.” A representative of that office testified that it was not true.
He denied plotting to remove Dunne as general counsel before he even started as CEO in an effort to spare his friend Glin and officials like Mathieu Zahui, the chief financial officer, and a target of the investigation.
But discovery in the lawsuit showed that Zahui had written during that time period that “The board and the incoming president would like to explore the possibilities of a do-over” on the general counsel hire.
Adkins did not return a request for comment from The Daily Wire.
Dunne said it has been painful to watch some turn the African Development Foundation into a “martyr,” seemingly to avoid acknowledging that DOGE’s scrutiny was warranted, when no one cared to fix it, though signs were abundant that it was broken.
He said he left his job at the Defense Department to come to the African agency “because I wanted to help people,” but found that widespread rule-breaking was short-changing both Africans and low-level staff.
“I think USADF deserved the fate that it received, because if it couldn’t be run correctly, then it shouldn’t be run at all. If the leaders of that agency couldn’t act, and members of the foreign policy establishment wouldn’t act,” he said. “It’s an indictment of the entire system.”
Editor&#8217;s note: This piece has been updated with information sent after publication by a representative from Travis Adkins, who refutes claims about his spending and says that Mateo Dunne&#8217;s claims about him are &#8220;self-serving&#8221; and &#8220;discredited.&#8221;
READ MORE:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/foreign-aid-official-who-resisted-doge-took-secret-payments-after-steering-africa-money-to-friend?author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Foreign+Aid+Official+Who+Resisted+DOGE+Took+Secret+Payments+After+Steering+Africa+Money+To+Friend%C2%A0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Foreign Aid Official Who Resisted DOGE Took Secret Payments After Steering Africa Money To Friend</a> </li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/african-aid-agency-used-foreign-pass-throughs-to-hide-money-that-went-to-d-c-staff-friends" target="_blank" rel="noopener">African Aid Agency Used Foreign Pass-Throughs To Hide Money That Went To D.C. Staff</a></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/aid-agency-pushed-officials-for-profit-pyramid-scheme-on-poor-africans?author=Luke+Rosiak&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Aid+Agency+Pushed+Official%E2%80%99s+For-Profit+Pyramid+Scheme+On+Poor+Africans" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Aid Agency Pushed Official’s For-Profit Pyramid Scheme On Poor Africans</a></li>
</ul>

‘Them White Motherf-ers’: Racist Agency Framed Its Lawyer After He Discovered Lawbreaking, He Says

Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI)

American-born Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost is chosen as the next pope, the Trump administration signs a trade deal with the United Kingdom, and a Daily Wire investigation uncovers fraud in an African Aid group.
It’s Friday, May 9, and this is the news you need to know to start your day.
Morning Wire is available on video! You can watch today’s episode here:
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<h2>A New Pope</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-917987" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_30_17.Still001.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_30_17.Still001.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_00_30_17.Still001-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes=" (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: The world has a new pope – the first American in history — Pope Leo XIV.
A new pope was named on Thursday. Cardinal Robert Prevost, a Chicago native, was elected pope on the second day of the conclave. Leo XIV, the Church&#8217;s 267th pope, will lead 1.4 billion Catholics around the world.
Pope Leo appeared visibly emotional as he appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica and addressed the massive crowd in the square.
“Peace be with you all! Dearest brothers and sisters, this is the first greeting of the resurrected Christ, the good shepherd who has given up his life for God, and I should also like this greeting of peace to enter our hearts and your families and to all those people wherever they are. All peoples throughout the world, peace be with you.”
Leo was born in the United States, but spent much of his priesthood in Peru. He became Bishop of Chiclayo in Peru for eight years until 2023, when he was made a cardinal by Pope Francis. He also led the Augustinian Order. Francis then made Prevost the Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops — this means he was a Vatican official responsible for recommending priests to be made bishops around the world. Prevost was not considered the most likely cardinal to become pope, but Vatican officials are often considered for the position.
Pope Leo has been strong on Church doctrine, but he has overall been seen as a centrist on political issues.
<h2>Trump Secures U.K. Trade Deal</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-917989" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_39_14.Still002.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_39_14.Still002.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_01_39_14.Still002-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes=" (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: President Donald Trump announced a trade agreement with the United Kingdom on Thursday, and the markets responded well amid hope of more trade deals to come.
Ever since President Trump rolled out his Liberation Day tariffs, he’s promised that U.S. trading partners would come to the negotiating table and that deals would follow — and on Thursday, we saw the first such deal. The president announced a “full and comprehensive” trade agreement to “cement the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom for many years to come.”
&#8220;This morning, I&#8217;m thrilled to announce that we have reached a breakthrough trade deal with the United Kingdom,” Trump said. “Today is a victory day in World War II, we won the war together, so there could be no more perfect morning to reach this historic agreement.”
The president held firm on the ten percent universal tariff he put in place last month, but did offer concessions elsewhere –  for example, he agreed to lower the tariff on British automobiles from 27.5% to 10%, while the rate for steel and aluminum will fall to zero.
For their part, the British agreed to open their markets to American ethanol, beef, and poultry — the White House said that means billions of dollars in new profits for our farmers and ranchers. They also agreed to purchase $10 billion of Boeing airplanes in exchange for the elimination of U.S. tariffs on Rolls-Royce engines and plane parts. Tech stocks skyrocketed when it was announced that the Brits would also eliminate a digital tax on American tech companies.
Trump hinted that he was “very close” on “numerous deals,” adding that Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent would be heading to Switzerland for negotiations with China. He also made sure to note that, rather than taking a piecemeal approach with the rest of Europe, he’s working on a single comprehensive deal with all of the EU – but the president also suggested that future deals would be unlikely to lower tariffs to the same degree.
<h2>Fraud Uncovered In African Aid</h2>
<div class="image"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-917991" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_32_27.Still003.jpeg" alt="" width="640" height="360" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_32_27.Still003.jpeg 640w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2025/05/SEGMENT-HEADERS.00_02_32_27.Still003-300x169.jpeg 300w" sizes=" (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /></div>
Topline: A new Daily Wire investigation uncovers how one government agency went to great lengths to block a DOGE audit.
The African Development Foundation was deemed a resistance hero by the media for stonewalling DOGE auditors, including locking their doors. A small federal agency with 30 employees and a $45 million budget, by law, the foundation is tasked with giving grants of up to $250,000 for economic development in Africa, and it’s only allowed to give to African-run entities.
Employees at the African Development Foundation refused to let DOGE in, and said they wouldn’t recognize Trump’s appointee to lead it – Peter Moracco, who was also dismantling USAID. They also filed a lawsuit claiming DOGE was intruding on their privacy. Ultimately, the Trump administration seized the building with the assistance of U.S. Marshals.
A Daily Wire investigation found that the African Development Foundation would give money to African organizations and then require them to redirect that money back to the United States to pay officials, their friends, or former employers. Americans who worked at the headquarters of this agency in D.C. were wired money from African entities.
“I literally have a receipt for $17,000 from Kenya to a woman who was working as the assistant to the African Development Foundation’s CEO,” Daily Wire Investigative Reporter Luke Rosiak told Morning Wire. “The CEO, CD Glin, would actually push unwanted projects on Africans as a way of steering money to his friends. In one case, they told African groups that they’d give a grant to manufacture COVID masks, but they had to subcontract it to Glin’s friend in Colorado. The African groups said there’s no demand for that, we already have all the COVID masks we need, but Glin didn’t care.”
USAID inspector general agents suspect that at least some of the refusal to cooperate with DOGE was an attempt to cover up criminal conduct. The African Development Foundation’s chief financial officer, Matthieu Zahui, repeatedly steered about a million dollars in grants and contracts to an African company called Ganiam Ltd. without competition. One of them was for “travel” during COVID, when international travel dropped precipitously. USAID IG seized Zahui’s phone and found that Ganiam was owned by Zahui’s friend, and every time he gave it a contract, the friend sent money to Zahui’s personal bank account. But Zahui was never arrested.

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Morning Brief: A New Pope, Trump Secures U.K. Trade Deal & Fraud Uncovered In African Aid

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