American Warns of More Nigeria Strikes as Nigeria's Capital Speaks of 'Collaborative Continuing Operations'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has indicated further airstrikes against Islamic State positions in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after U.S. military forces took action against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these actions as part of a mission to halt the killing of Christians.

“The president was explicit previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” Hegseth posted on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Foreign Minister Frames Actions as Joint Operation

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative ongoing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a non-religious 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 religious persecution. Nigerian authorities have noted that armed groups attack both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Collaboration Preceding the Airstrikes

Nigeria provided the information for the airstrikes 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 spoke with the American official again.

“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve always been hoping for, to work with the Americans, to work with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end 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 coordination with Nigerian authorities.

Context of Violence in North-West Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as bases by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some observers say this affiliate originated when herders banded together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

Conflicts between Muslim herders and mostly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in competition for land and water.

• Priests and pastors have been increasingly kidnapped for ransom, though some experts 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 distinct conflict largely separate to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Violence and Statistics

There have been thousands of incidents of violence in Nigeria this year, with about half of them affecting civilians, according to conflict monitoring data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the most affected regions.

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

Broader U.S. Military Posture

This action occurs amid a wider pattern of American activity overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the first year of this presidency has seen strikes in multiple countries and a major deployment of forces in another region.

Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any casualties in the recent airstrikes. When questioned if additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a fresh chapter of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”