American Signals of Further Nigeria Airstrikes as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.
The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has indicated new strikes against ISIS strongholds in north-western Nigeria. This comes a short time after U.S. military forces conducted operations against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has characterized these efforts as part of a campaign to stop the slaughter of Christians.
“The president was clear previously: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” the defense secretary stated on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Grateful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”
Nigeria's Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation
Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment came after Trump had previously accused Nigeria’s government of failing to stop Christians from being killed.
Nigeria is officially a secular state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. Nigerian authorities have noted that militants target both Christians and Muslims.
Intelligence and Coordination Preceding the Missions
Nigeria supplied the intelligence for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He explained that he had consulted with his American opposite number, before called the Nigerian president for authorization, and subsequently spoke with the American official again.
“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to work with other countries, to fight terrorism, to stop the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africom said the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with local officials.
Background of Violence in North-West Nigeria
Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as bases by gangs of armed bandits and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this affiliate originated when pastoralists joined together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.
Conflicts between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in competition for land and water.
- Priests and religious leaders have been increasingly taken hostage, though some specialists say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
- A Christmas Eve 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.
Continuing Violence and Data
There have been thousands of events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about 50% of them targeting civilians, according to conflict monitoring data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the hardest-hit regions.
Tuggar stressed that the operation was about “protecting Nigerians and innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”
Wider U.S. Foreign Policy
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 withdraw the U.S. from “endless wars,” the initial period 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 disclosed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When asked 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.”
