Marco Rubio Warns Radical Islam Poses Imminent Global Threat and Announces Visa Restrictions for Persecutors of Christians

US State Secretary Marco Rubio issued a stark warning on Wednesday that radical Islam's ambition to "control more territories and people" poses an "imminent threat" to the world. During his address, he also announced that the United States will implement visa restrictions for individuals who "direct, authorize, fund or support violence against Christians" in Nigeria and globally.

In a Fox News interview, Rubio emphasized that the United States faces its greatest threat from radical Islamists, whom he believes view America as "the chief source of evil on the planet."

"Radical Islam has demonstrated that their objective is not simply to occupy a single region and be content with their own caliphate; they seek expansion. It's revolutionary by nature. Their goal is to expand and control additional territories and populations," Rubio explained.

"This represents a clear and imminent threat to the world and the broader West, but especially to the United States, which they identify as the primary source of evil globally," he continued.

Rubio further elaborated that radical Islamists are "prepared to conduct acts of terrorism, assassination, murders" in pursuit of their goal of "domination of different cultures and societies."

"Radical Islam has designs, openly, on the West, on the United States, on Europe. We've witnessed their progress there as well. They are prepared to conduct acts of terrorism – in Iran's case, nation-state actions, assassinations, murders, whatever it takes for them to gain influence and ultimately dominate various cultures and societies," Rubio stated during the Fox News interview.

Additionally, Secretary Rubio announced that the US will restrict visas for those "who knowingly direct, authorize, fund, support" or perpetrate atrocities and violence against Christians in Nigeria and worldwide.

In a statement posted on X, Rubio declared, "The United States is taking decisive action in response to the atrocities and violence against Christians in Nigeria and around the world. The State Department will restrict US visas for those who knowingly direct, authorize, fund, support, or carry out violations of religious freedom. This visa policy applies to Nigeria and other governments or individuals that persecute people for their religious beliefs."

Earlier, US President Donald Trump had warned that Washington might consider military action against Nigeria, alleging that the country's Christians are being deliberately targeted and killed. His comments have garnered support from numerous voices within right-wing and evangelical Christian circles in the United States.

US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth announced on social media Friday that he had met with Nigeria's National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu and his team the previous day. He indicated their discussions centered on what he described as "the horrific violence against Christians in their country."

According to Reuters, Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation, has been engaged in a prolonged battle against Islamist insurgent groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) for more than 15 years. This insurgency, primarily concentrated in the northeastern region of the country, has resulted in thousands of casualties and displaced millions of people.