US Warns of Additional Nigerian Strikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has indicated new military actions against Islamic State targets in northwest Nigeria. This follows hours after U.S. military forces launched strikes against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has characterized these efforts as part of a campaign to halt the killing of Christians.

“The president was clear last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” the defense secretary stated on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Grateful for Nigerian government backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Foreign Minister Describes Actions as Collaborative Operation

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

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

Information and Collaboration Behind the Missions

Nigeria provided the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a local broadcaster. He detailed that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, then contacted the Nigerian president for approval, and subsequently 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 innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”

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

Context of Violence in North-West 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 affiliate started when herders banded together to combat bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

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

• Clergy and religious leaders have been increasingly kidnapped for ransom, though some specialists say this may be driven more by financial motives than religious discrimination.
• A Christmas Eve 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 separate to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Violence and Data

There have been numerous incidents 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 hardest-hit regions.

Tuggar stressed that the mission was about “protecting Nigerians and innocent lives,” not one religion. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Wider U.S. Military Policy

This intervention comes amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this period. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in several countries and a significant deployment of forces in another region.

Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any casualties in the latest airstrikes. When questioned if more would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a fresh chapter of an old conflict. For us it is something that is continuing.”