American Signals of Further Nigeria Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Operations'.
The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has indicated additional airstrikes against Islamic State positions in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after U.S. military forces took action against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a mission to halt the killing of Christians.
“The president was explicit last month: the murder of innocent Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” Hegseth posted on a social platform. “The Pentagon is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Thankful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”
Nigeria's Foreign Minister Describes Actions as Collaborative Operation
Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of joint 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 nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has drawn attention from conservative 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 Airstrikes
Nigerian authorities supplied the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He explained that he had spoken with his American opposite number, then contacted the Nigerian president for approval, and subsequently conferred with the American official again.
“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve always been hoping for, to partner with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africom confirmed the operations in Sokoto state had been carried out in concert with Nigerian authorities.
Background of Conflict in North-West Nigeria
Forests in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by gangs of armed bandits and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some analysts say this affiliate originated when pastoralists joined together to combat bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.
Conflicts between Muslim herders and mostly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in competition for land and water.
- Priests and pastors 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 insurgency largely separate to the violence in the north-west.
Continuing Violence and Statistics
There have been numerous 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 hardest-hit 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.”
Wider American Foreign Posture
This action comes amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “endless wars,” the initial period of this term has seen strikes in several countries and a major military buildup in another region.
Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When asked if additional actions would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a fresh chapter of an old conflict. For us it is something that is continuing.”
