American Signals of Additional Nigerian Airstrikes as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has signaled new strikes against Islamic State strongholds in north-western Nigeria. This comes hours after U.S. military forces took action against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has described these efforts as part of a mission to halt the killing of Christians.

“The president was explicit last month: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” the defense secretary wrote on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Collaborative Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of joint ongoing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had previously alleged Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to stop Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a non-religious state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from conservative groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. Nigerian authorities have noted that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Coordination Behind the Airstrikes

Nigerian authorities provided the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a local broadcaster. He detailed that he had spoken with his American opposite number, before contacted 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 partner with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the death of blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africa Command confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been carried out in coordination with Nigerian authorities.

Context of Conflict in North-West Nigeria

Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by gangs of armed bandits and members of ISSP. Some observers say this IS branch originated when pastoralists joined together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

Conflicts between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in disputes for resources.

• Clergy and pastors have been increasingly taken hostage, though some specialists say this may be driven more by financial motives 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 distinct 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 affecting civilians, according to conflict monitoring data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the hardest-hit regions.

Tuggar emphasized that the mission was about “protecting Nigerians and civilians,” not a single faith. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Broader U.S. Military Policy

This intervention occurs amid a broader pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this administration. Despite running as a “champion of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “endless wars,” the initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in several countries and a significant military buildup in another region.

Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any casualties in the recent airstrikes. When questioned 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.”