Millions of Christians in Africa are marking Christmas under the threat of Islamist violence, as US military strikes signal new chapter against persecution

JOHANNESBURG: Millions of Christians in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), spending Christmas under the reported threat of persecution, kidnapping, sexual violence and in some cases, death from Islamist militants, have seen Friday’s U.S. strikes on Islamic State militants in Nigeria as a real sign that President Trump is serious in his efforts to stop the killing of Africa’s Christians.
Over 16 million Christians are estimated to have been displaced and ripped from their homes across the region. The alleged release of 130 kidnapped schoolchildren in Nigeria this week has done little to reduce fears, as many on the continent try to worship at Christmas.
But this year, Fox News Digital has highlighted the catastrophe from Africa on multiple occasions. The situation led to senior members of Congress, including Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas., Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., and ultimately, President Donald Trump's threats and now actions have shone strong light on the violence.

In Africa this Christmas, so far there’s reportedly little sign of improvement. "The militant Islamist onslaught across SSA is a catastrophe of global proportions unfolding before us," Henrietta Blyth, CEO of Open Doors UK & Ireland, told Fox News Digital this week.
Open Doors is a global Christian charity supporting Christians persecuted for their faith.
Blyth continued, "the last year has seen a non-stop stream of reports from sub-Saharan Africa. (including) reports of militant Islamist groups brutally attacking, among others, defenseless Christian communities."
"At Open Doors, we have been sounding the alarm through our Arise Africa campaign. We’ve prayed repeatedly that the campaign of terror will reach public awareness."
Referring to Nigeria and the thousands of Christians reported to have been killed there each year and the speeches, articles and posts against the violence, Open Doors’ Blyth states, "There is no sign that this has abated in 2025".

Widow says she saw 'faintest smile' on Charlie Kirk's face, indicating he didn't suffer

Erika Kirk, the widow of slain Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, remembered her husband's legacy at a memorial for him Sunday — and revealed her thoughts about his alleged assassin. 
Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old suspect charged in Charlie Kirk's Sept. 10 death, was much like the other young men that Charlie Kirk encountered, Erika Kirk said. 
Charlie Kirk "wanted to save young men, just like the one who took his life," she said.
"Our Savior said, 'Father, forgive them, for they not know what they do.' That young man … I forgive him," Erika Kirk said. "I forgive him because it was what Christ did, and it's what Charlie would do."
​Speaking to a crowd at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, Erika Kirk thanked the audience for honoring her husband.
She began her speech by quoting one of Charlie Kirk's favorite Bible verses, Isaiah 6:8: "Here I am, Lord. Send me," and recalled a time that Charlie Kirk repeated it at the end of a conference.

​Sen Chuck Schumer fumes over Supreme Court backing Tennessee's ban on transgender treatments for minors, while Republicans champion 'sanity'
 By Danielle Wallace , Kelly Phares Fox News

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., slammed the U.S. Supreme Court's decision on Wednesday to uphold Tennessee's ban on transgender "treatments" for minors. 
"This Supreme Court seems to have forgotten that one of their jobs is to protect individual rights and protect individuals from being discriminated against. It's an awful decision," Schumer told reporters on Capitol Hill. 
Schumer accused Republicans of trying to infringe on the rights of transgender youths. 

​The Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA), meanwhile, said the majority's decision "helps restore sanity for millions of families across America." 
"Boys are boys and girls are girls," RAGA President and Executive Director Adam Piper said in a statement to Fox News Digital. "While Republican AGs crusade against risky, irreversible gender transition procedures for minors, Dem pander to their extreme donors and slouch towards Gomorrah. We must continue to protect our daughters from men trying to invade their single-sex spaces, privacy and athletic competitions." 
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti – whose office handled the defense in the case – praised the decision, saying that "the common sense of Tennessee voters prevailed over judicial activism."