🔗 Share this article US Signals of Further Nigeria Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Continuing Missions'. The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional strikes against IS targets in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after U.S. military forces conducted operations against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to end the slaughter of Christians. “The commander-in-chief was explicit previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” Hegseth wrote 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!” The Nigerian Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Joint Operation Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent 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 conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants attack both Christians and Muslims. Intelligence and Coordination Preceding the Airstrikes Nigeria provided the information for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He detailed that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, before contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and then spoke 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 partner with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to stop the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.” The U.S. military’s Africa Command confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with local officials. Background of Violence in North-West Nigeria Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this IS branch started when pastoralists banded 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 ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in competition for resources. 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 attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate insurgency mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west. Continuing Unrest and Data There have been thousands of events 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 innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.” Wider American Military Policy This action comes amid a broader 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 first year of this term has seen strikes in multiple countries and a major military buildup in another region. Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the latest airstrikes. When asked if additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is continuing.”
The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional strikes against IS targets in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after U.S. military forces conducted operations against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to end the slaughter of Christians. “The commander-in-chief was explicit previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” Hegseth wrote 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!” The Nigerian Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Joint Operation Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent 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 conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants attack both Christians and Muslims. Intelligence and Coordination Preceding the Airstrikes Nigeria provided the information for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He detailed that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, before contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and then spoke 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 partner with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to stop the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.” The U.S. military’s Africa Command confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with local officials. Background of Violence in North-West Nigeria Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this IS branch started when pastoralists banded 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 ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in competition for resources. 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 attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate insurgency mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west. Continuing Unrest and Data There have been thousands of events 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 innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.” Wider American Military Policy This action comes amid a broader 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 first year of this term has seen strikes in multiple countries and a major military buildup in another region. Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the latest airstrikes. When asked if additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is continuing.”