US Signals of More Nigerian Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Continuing Operations'.
The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has warned of further airstrikes against IS positions in northwest Nigeria. This follows hours after U.S. military forces launched strikes against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has described these efforts as part of a mission to end the killing of Christians.
“The commander-in-chief was clear previously: the murder of innocent Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” Hegseth stated on a social platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Thankful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”
Nigeria's Foreign Minister Describes Actions as Collaborative Effort
Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier alleged 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 drawn attention from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. Nigerian authorities have noted that armed groups target both Christians and Muslims.
Information and Collaboration Behind the Airstrikes
Nigerian authorities provided the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He detailed that he had consulted with his American opposite number, before contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and subsequently conferred 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 innocent Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africa Command said the operations in Sokoto state had been executed in concert with local officials.
Context of Conflict in North-West Nigeria
Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as bases by gangs of armed bandits and members of ISSP. Some observers say this affiliate originated when herders 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 aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in disputes for resources.
- Priests and religious leaders have increasingly been taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by financial motives than sectarian hatred.
- A December 24th suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate conflict largely unrelated to the violence in the north-west.
Continuing Unrest and Data
There have been numerous events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about half of them targeting civilians, according to research data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the most affected regions.
Tuggar emphasized that the mission was about “protecting Nigerians and innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”
Broader American Military Policy
This intervention comes amid a broader pattern of American activity overseas during this administration. Despite running as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the initial period of this term has seen military actions 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 latest 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.”
