American Signals of Additional Nigeria Strikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Ongoing Missions'.
The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has indicated further airstrikes against Islamic State positions in north-western Nigeria. This comes a short time after U.S. military forces launched strikes against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has described these efforts as part of a mission to halt the killing of Christians.
“The commander-in-chief was explicit last month: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” the defense secretary posted on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Thankful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”
The Nigerian Top Diplomat Frames Actions as Joint Effort
Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the American military actions were “part of joint ongoing operations.” This comment followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed.
Nigeria is officially a non-religious state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from conservative groups in the United States, who frame it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants target both Christians and Muslims.
Intelligence and Collaboration Behind the Airstrikes
Nigeria supplied the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a local broadcaster. He explained that he had consulted with his American opposite number, then called the Nigerian president for approval, and then spoke with the American official again.
“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to fight terrorism, to end the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africa Command confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Context of Conflict in Northwestern Nigeria
Wooded areas 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 joined together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.
Clashes between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their roots 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 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 separate conflict mostly separate to the violence in the north-west.
Continuing Violence and Data
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 stressed that the mission was about “safeguarding Nigerians and civilians,” not a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”
Broader U.S. Foreign Posture
This action occurs amid a wider pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this administration. Despite running as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the first year of this presidency has seen military actions in multiple countries and a major deployment of forces in another region.
Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the latest airstrikes. When asked 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.”
