New Year, Same Violence: Queer Nigerians Begin 2026 Facing Public Lynching

This is what I think as a young Nigerian man living in Germany

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Photo: @phspecials/X from Port Harcourt, Nigeria.

As the new year begins, Nigeria has once again witnessed a public homophobic lynching. In Port Harcourt, the capital of Rivers State, more than seven queer men were publicly assaulted, whipped, stripped naked, beaten, and paraded before a crowd.

The victims were forced to hold cardboard placards carrying explicitly anti-queer messages such as “No to gay” and “I won’t be gay again.” These men were outed against their will, laughed at, physically abused, and subjected to public humiliation for being in consensual same-sex relationships.

A video of this public mob assault was shared on X (formerly Twitter) by the account @phsspecials on January 26, 2026, where it has since surpassed 1.4 million views. The reaction has exposed a disturbing reality: a significant number of users within Nigeria openly celebrated the violence, framing the abuse as justified. Others, both locally and internationally, have expressed outrage and alarm.

This incident underscores a longstanding and unresolved contradiction within Nigerian society. As X (formerly twitter) user @ITSINNERCHILD wrote:

In a country facing systemic corruption, widespread sexual violence, economic collapse, insecurity, and political impunity, public energy is repeatedly mobilized to brutalize consenting young men as though they committed capital crimes. Meanwhile, rapists, pedophiles, corrupt politicians, and large-scale fraudsters continue to walk free, often protected by the very systems that criminalize queer existence.

Same-sex relationships remain criminalized in Nigeria, enabling an environment for mob violence. The knowledge that law enforcement agencies, and the state itself, are hostile to queer people emboldens perpetrators. Lynching becomes not only tolerated, but socially reinforced.

What makes this case particularly significant is its location. Port Harcourt is Nigeria’s fifth most populous city, after Lagos. This demonstrates that urbanization offers no protection. Neither large cities nor small shield queer Nigerians from fellow citizens who act as vigilantes, from police officers who see abuse as justified, or from a government that prescribes imprisonment or worse based on sexual orientation.

The persistent claim that same-sex relationships are “unnatural” has fueled a culture of fear and silence. Many queer Nigerians are forced into hiding or into lavender relationships and performative heterosexual partnerships intended to provide social camouflage. While such arrangements exist globally, including in parts of Europe, the Nigerian context is far more lethal.

Intelligence and Pattern of Organized Attacks

Beyond spontaneous mob violence, there is growing evidence of organized homophobic targeting. Intelligence reports and community documentation confirm the existence of individuals and groups who create fake queer profiles on dating platforms and social spaces. These profiles are used to lure queer people into meetings, where they are then ambushed, tortured, extorted for money, and threatened with exposure or arrest.

In many cases, victims are told they will be handed over to the police unless ransom payments are made.

This form of jungle justice public lynching, extortion, and humiliation continues unchecked. Across Nigeria, queer people are constantly still being hunted. Data and community reports show the attacks have escalated, with the pattern continuing into the new year.

Editor’s note: A video of the attack, which contains graphic and disturbing content, posted by @phsspecials on X, may be viewd at https://x.com/phspecials/status/2015709175322497297.