By CBN News Published February 11, 2026 The U.S. is planning to send 200 American troops to help fight terrorism in Nigeria, according to the Wall Street Journal. The contingent will reinforce a small group of U.S. military personnel already on the ground there. Officials say the U.S. troops will not be involved directly in combat, but their mission is to train Nigeria's military to fight Islamic militants. "The terrorist activity in West Africa—and Nigeria specifically—is something we're incred... Read more

By Hannah Hiester Published February 11, 2026 Several members of Congress from foreign affairs committees introduced legislation in the House of Representatives Feb. 10 to institute strategies holding Nigeria accountable for the ongoing persecution of Christians in the country. Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J., who co-introduced the Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026 with its author, Rep. Riley Moore, R-W.Va., stated in a press release that the legislation would require the U.S. se... Read more

By Derek VanBuskirk Published February 10, 2026 at 10:20 AM ET House Republicans have introduced a bill Tuesday to prompt U.S. action to document “religious persecution and mass atrocities in Nigeria,” the Daily Caller first learned. The Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026 calls on the Secretary of State to give the foreign affairs committees in the House of Representatives and the Senate an annual report on U.S. efforts to address Christian persecution. It also calls on the... Read more

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, issued the following statement in wake of a Hong Kong court’s horrific 20-year sentencing of the 78-year-old Jimmy Lai—functionally, a life sentence: Jimmy Lai is a man of faith and conscientious conviction, and he should be released immediately. Despite—or perhaps, in spite of—his life’s work as a legendary entrepreneur and a lion of free speech, Jimmy has been unjustly prosecuted and persecuted by functionar... Read more

By Tessa Gervasini Published February 9, 2026 at 4:45 PM ET “The Hong Kong High Court’s decision to sentence Jimmy Lai to 20 years is an unjust and tragic conclusion to this case,” said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in a Feb. 9 statement. Jimmy Lai, Catholic entrepreneur and media tycoon, was sentenced on Feb. 9 to 20 years in prison over what Chinese officials claim were national security violations. The sentencing comes after Lai’s December 2025 conviction, which ended several years of w... Read more

U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chairman of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, joined NTD’s Capitol Report with Steve Lance to discuss Hong Kong’s sentencing of British-Hong Kong businessman Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison, in what is being called the harshest sentence to be handed down under the new National Security Law. Smith also discussed the implications for Hong Kong and how the United States should respond. The full interview can be viewed by clicking here. ### Read more

On Monday, February 9th, Rep. Chris Smith joined The Mark Levin Show to discuss the Hong Kong court’s horrific 20-year sentencing of the 78-year-old Jimmy Lai, Communist China’s egregious human rights violations, U.S. foreign policy with Iran, and his upcoming congressional hearing on the DRC-Rwanda conflict and President Trump’s “Washington Accords for Peace and Prosperity.” The full interview can be listened to by clicking here. ### Read more

By Madalaine Elhabbal Published February 5, 2026 at 12:16 PM ET Representatives from the U.S. and African bishops’ conferences convened in Washington, D.C., during a congressional hearing on Capitol Hill this week in a display of solidarity as religious freedom in Nigeria continues to come into sharper focus. Bishop Stephen Dami Mamza of the Yola Diocese in northeast Nigeria concelebrated a Mass on Feb. 4 for solidarity between the bishops and faithful of the Catholic Church in the U.S. and Afri... Read more

By Jim Lonergan Published February 5, 2026 at 6:11 PM WASHINGTON, D.C. — Several municipalities across Monmouth County will receive significant federal funding for infrastructure, environmental, and public safety improvements through earmarks secured by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) in the recently approved consolidated federal budget. Overall, the legislation includes more than $23.8 million in federal funding for infrastructure and humanitarian initiatives across Ocean and Monmouth counties, with mu... Read more

By Lakewood Alerts Published February 5, 2026 Rep. Chris Smith has secured more than $23.8 million in federal funding for infrastructure, public safety, environmental, and humanitarian projects across Ocean and Monmouth counties. The funding was included in the recently approved consolidated federal budget through congressional earmarks submitted by Smith. His office said the allocations are intended to address a range of local needs, from drinking water and flood control to law enforcement and ... Read more