US Warns of Additional Nigeria Strikes as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Collaborative Continuing Missions'.
The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional strikes against Islamic State positions in northwest Nigeria. This comes hours after U.S. military forces launched strikes against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has characterized these actions as part of a mission to stop the killing of Christians.
“The president was explicit previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth wrote on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Grateful for Nigerian government backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”
Nigeria's Foreign Minister Frames Strikes as Collaborative Effort
Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative ongoing operations.” This statement came after the former U.S. leader had previously alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent 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 frame it as sectarian targeting. Nigerian authorities have pointed out that militants target both Christians and Muslims.
Information and Collaboration Preceding the Airstrikes
Nigeria provided the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a local broadcaster. He explained that he had spoken with his American opposite number, before called the Nigerian president for authorization, and then spoke with the American official again.
“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to work with other countries, to fight terrorism, to end the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africa Command confirmed the operations in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with local officials.
Context of Violence in North-West Nigeria
Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some observers say this affiliate started when herders banded together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.
Clashes between Muslim herders and predominantly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in disputes for land and water.
- Clergy and religious leaders have increasingly been taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than religious discrimination.
- A Christmas Eve attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a separate conflict mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west.
Continuing Unrest and Data
There have been thousands of events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about 50% of them affecting civilians, according to conflict monitoring data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the hardest-hit regions.
Tuggar emphasized that the mission was about “safeguarding Nigerians and innocent lives,” not one religion. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”
Broader American Foreign Policy
This intervention occurs amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “endless wars,” the first year of this presidency has seen strikes in several countries and a major military buildup 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 fresh chapter of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”
