US Warns of Additional Nigeria Military Actions as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.
The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has warned of further strikes against Islamic State strongholds in northwest Nigeria. This follows hours after American forces launched strikes against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has framed these efforts as part of a campaign to stop the killing of Christians.
“The president was clear previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” Hegseth wrote on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Thankful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”
The Nigerian Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Joint Effort
Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the American military actions were “part of joint ongoing operations.” This comment came after the former U.S. leader had previously alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to stop Christians from being killed.
Nigeria is officially a non-religious state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has drawn attention from conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. Nigerian authorities have noted that armed groups target both Christians and Muslims.
Intelligence and Coordination Preceding the Airstrikes
Nigeria provided the information for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a local broadcaster. He explained that he had spoken with his U.S. counterpart, then contacted the Nigerian president for approval, and subsequently spoke with the American official again.
“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “This is what we’ve always been hoping for, to work with the Americans, to work with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the death of blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africa Command said the strikes in Sokoto state had been carried out in coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Background of Violence in North-West Nigeria
Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as bases by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some analysts say this IS branch started when herders joined together to combat bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.
Clashes between Muslim herders and predominantly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in competition for resources.
- Priests and pastors have been increasingly kidnapped for ransom, though some specialists say this may be driven more by financial motives than religious discrimination.
- A Christmas Eve attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a distinct conflict largely unrelated to the violence in the north-west.
Continuing Violence and Statistics
There have been thousands of events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about half of them affecting civilians, according to conflict monitoring data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the most affected regions.
Tuggar emphasized that the operation was about “safeguarding Nigerians and innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”
Broader American Foreign Policy
This intervention comes amid a broader pattern of American activity overseas during this administration. Despite running as a “candidate of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the first year of this presidency has seen strikes in several countries and a significant deployment of forces in another region.
Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When questioned if more would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”
