U.S. Congress members seek halt to $1 billion Nigeria weapons deal

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: Rep. Chris Smith speaks when U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken testifies before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs on The Biden Administration's Priorities for U.S. Foreign Policy on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, U.S., March 10, 2021. Ken Cedeno/Pool via REUTERS

Two members of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee on Wednesday called on President Joe Biden to rescind a nearly $1 billion arms sale to Nigeria following Reuters reports on an illegal abortion program and the targeted killing of children carried out by the Nigerian military.

Democrat Sara Jacobs of California and Republican Chris Smith of New Jersey, both members of the subcommittee on Africa, also called for a review of security assistance and cooperation programs in Nigeria, including a risk assessment of civilian casualties and abuses resulting from the arms assistance.