A Nigerian pastor who has spent years warning the world about violence against Christians says he has no intention of backing down, even after terrorists allegedly searching for him killed nine members of his extended family.
Pastor Ezekiel Dachomo has become one of the most prominent voices drawing international attention to attacks on Christian communities in Nigeria’s Middle Belt. His advocacy has reached Washington, where his warnings about religious persecution were reportedly cited by President Donald Trump in discussions about the situation.
According to Truth Nigeria, Fulani gunmen targeted Dachomo during a July 11 attack but failed to find him. Instead, the attackers killed nine members of his family in what survivors described as a systematic assault.
James Yohanna, one of only three people who survived the attack, recounted the events in harrowing detail.
He said the violence began when armed men attempted to force their way into his brother’s home. After his brother fled, he was shot in the arm and leg but managed to escape and hide before his attackers could catch him.
Roughly 30 minutes later, Yohanna heard gunfire outside his son’s home.
“I heard my son saying, ‘please don’t harm us,'” Yohanna said. He recalled hearing one of the attackers, speaking Hausa with what he described as a Fulani accent, demand to know the “father of the house.”
To the world
My name is Reverend Ezekiel Dachomo and today I speak not with hatred but with a heart full of pain and faith
A few days ago Fulani herdsmen sent a threatening letter to me and to members of my church
The letter was written in both Hausa and English and its… pic.twitter.com/TmwEaIi0d4
— Rev. Ezekiel Dachomo (@ezekieldachomo0) July 17, 2026
According to Yohanna, the question was intended to locate Dachomo.
When no answer was given, the gunmen opened fire.
Yohanna said his son, his daughter-in-law, and their two-month-old daughter were all shot.
Fearing for the lives of those still inside, Yohanna threw his six-year-old daughter through a window before escaping into nearby brush as one of the attackers fired repeatedly in his direction.
After temporarily evading the gunmen, he attempted to return to the house but heard automatic gunfire coming from the room where his six daughters had been sleeping.
When the attackers began leaving, one of the girls, a four-year-old, cried out in fear. Yohanna said one of the gunmen returned and shot her before departing.
By the time security forces arrived, he said, his wife, son, daughter-in-law, infant granddaughter, and six daughters had all been killed.
The attack drew condemnation from Nigerian lawmaker Fom Dalyop Chollom, who described it as evidence that Christian communities were under direct assault.
“What has happened is sad,” Chollom said. “It is a clear manifestation of the fact that these people have declared war on the Christian natives.”
Advocacy groups monitoring violence in Nigeria also pointed to what they describe as a continuing pattern of attacks.
Judd Saul, founder of Equipping the Persecuted, said his organization has documented numerous killings of Christians that it attributes to Islamist Fulani ethnic militias.
“The Islamist Fulani ethnic militia hate Pastor Ezekiel and targeted him because he is waking up Christians to the reality of what they are facing,” Saul told Fox News.
He added that more than 40 Christians had reportedly been killed within the previous week and warned that additional attacks were anticipated.
A State Department representative likewise condemned the killings, saying there “remains a shocking level of violence against Christians in the Middle Belt committed by Fulani Ethnic Militia.”
“We unequivocally condemn this heinous act,” the representative said. “We urge the Nigerian authorities to hold the perpetrators accountable and take specific steps that will improve security for Christians.”
Dachomo has appealed directly to the United States for support, urging President Trump to continue pressing Nigeria’s government to better protect Christian communities.
“We ask President Trump to stop the Fulani terrorists from killing our people in Nigeria’s Middle Belt and surrounding regions,” Dachomo said. “These attacks against Christian communities have been going on for years and must be stopped. We need the United States to stand with us.”
Despite the personal loss, Dachomo has made clear that he does not intend to stop speaking publicly.
In a statement posted on X after the attack, he acknowledged receiving threats but said he was not intimidated.
“Many people have asked me if I am afraid,” he wrote. “My answer is no. I am not afraid because my life is in the hands of Almighty God.”
He continued by asking whether his offense was advocating for orphaned children whose parents had been killed, telling the stories of persecuted Christians, or preaching the Gospel while refusing to remain silent.
“If that is my crime then I will continue until my last breath,” Dachomo wrote. “They may threaten my life but they cannot silence the truth. They may kill the messenger but they cannot kill the message.”
