American Issues Warning of Further Nigerian Strikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has indicated further airstrikes against ISIS targets 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 described these efforts as part of a campaign to stop the killing of Christians.

“The president was explicit last month: 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 discovered tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Frames Actions as Collaborative Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of collaborative ongoing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had previously accused Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is officially a secular state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have noted that armed groups attack both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Coordination Preceding the Missions

Nigerian authorities provided the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a local broadcaster. He detailed that he had spoken with his American opposite number, before called the Nigerian president for approval, and subsequently 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 combat terrorism, to end the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with local officials.

Background of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some analysts say this IS branch started when herders joined together to combat bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Conflicts between Muslim herders and mostly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in disputes for resources.

• Clergy and religious leaders have increasingly been kidnapped for ransom, though some experts say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A Christmas Eve suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria killed at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate conflict largely unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Violence and Statistics

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 mission was about “protecting Nigerians and civilians,” not a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Wider American Foreign Posture

This intervention occurs amid a broader pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “champion 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 significant military buildup 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 additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is continuing.”