US Issues Warning of Additional Nigeria Airstrikes as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.
The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has indicated new strikes against ISIS targets in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after American forces launched strikes against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has framed these efforts as part of a campaign to end the slaughter of Christians.
“The commander-in-chief was explicit last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth stated on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Thankful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”
Nigeria's Top Diplomat Describes Strikes as Joint Operation
Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative ongoing operations.” This statement came after Trump had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of failing to stop Christians from being killed.
Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who describe it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants attack both Christians and Muslims.
Information and Coordination Preceding the Missions
Nigeria provided the information for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He detailed that he had spoken with his American opposite number, then contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and then conferred with the American official again.
“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve always been hoping for, to work with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to fight terrorism, to end the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africom confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Background of Conflict in Northwestern Nigeria
Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by gangs of armed bandits and members of ISSP. Some observers say this IS branch originated when herders banded together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.
Clashes between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in disputes for resources.
- Priests and pastors have been increasingly taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by financial motives than religious discrimination.
- A December 24th suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a distinct insurgency largely separate to the violence in the north-west.
Ongoing Unrest and Statistics
There have been thousands of incidents of violence in Nigeria this year, with about 50% of them targeting civilians, according to research data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the most affected regions.
Tuggar stressed that the operation was about “safeguarding Nigerians and civilians,” not one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”
Broader U.S. Military Policy
This intervention comes amid a wider pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this administration. Despite running as a “champion of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “endless wars,” the initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in several countries and a major deployment of forces in another region.
No official from the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any casualties in the recent airstrikes. When questioned if more would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is continuing.”
