US Signals of Further Nigeria Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Ongoing Operations'.

The American defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has warned of new strikes against ISIS targets in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after American forces conducted operations against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has described these efforts as part of a campaign to stop the killing of Christians.

“The commander-in-chief was explicit last month: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” Hegseth stated on a social platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Grateful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Foreign Minister Describes Strikes as Joint Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment followed after Trump had previously accused Nigeria’s government of failing to stop Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. Nigerian authorities have noted that militants attack both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Collaboration Preceding the Airstrikes

Nigeria supplied the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a local broadcaster. He detailed that he had spoken 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 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 blameless 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 local officials.

Context of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as bases by gangs of armed bandits and members of ISSP. Some observers say this affiliate originated when pastoralists joined together to combat bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Clashes between Muslim herders 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 experts say this may be driven more by financial motives 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 mostly separate to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Unrest and Statistics

There have been thousands of events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about 50% of them affecting civilians, according to research data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the most affected regions.

Tuggar emphasized that the operation was about “safeguarding Nigerians and innocent lives,” not one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Broader American Military Posture

This action occurs amid a wider pattern of American engagement overseas during this period. Despite campaigning as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the first year of this term has seen strikes in several countries and a significant military buildup in another region.

Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have disclosed 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 long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is continuing.”