- If the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the US will immediately suspend all aid to Nigeria and it is very possible that they will enter that now-disgraced country,"shooting guns", to completely destroy the Islamic terrorists who commit these terrible crimes - announced Trump on his social network Truth Social.

He ordered the US"War Department to prepare for possible action".

- If we attack, it will be quick, ferocious and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our beloved Christians - said the American president.

He warned the Nigerian government that it"must act quickly".

The warning of possible military action came after Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu earlier today responded sharply to Trump's announcement a day earlier that he would designate the West African country a"country of particular concern" for its alleged failure to curb the persecution of Christians.

Tinubu said the characterization of Nigeria as a religiously intolerant country does not reflect the national reality.

- Religious freedom and tolerance were the basic principles of our collective identity and will always remain so. Nigeria opposes and does not encourage religious persecution. Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees of protection of citizens of all religions - he stated.

Trump said on Friday that"Christianity faces an existential threat in Nigeria" and that "radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter".

Trump's comments came weeks after US Senator Ted Cruz called on Congress to label Africa's most populous country as a violator of religious freedom, with claims of"mass murder of Christians".

Nigeria has a population of 220 million and is almost equally divided between Christians and Muslims.

The country has long faced insecurity from various fronts, including the extremist group Boko Haram, which is seeking to establish its radical interpretation of Islamic law.