US Warns of More Nigerian Airstrikes as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.
The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has warned of new strikes against IS strongholds in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after American forces conducted operations against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to end the killing of Christians.
“The president was clear last month: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” Hegseth wrote on a social platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”
The Nigerian Foreign Minister Describes Actions as Joint Effort
Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative ongoing operations.” This comment followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent 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 drawn attention from conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have pointed out that armed groups target both Christians and Muslims.
Information and Collaboration Preceding the Missions
Nigeria supplied the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He detailed that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, then 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 killing of innocent Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”
The U.S. military’s Africa Command said the strikes in Sokoto state had been carried out in coordination with local officials.
Background of Violence in North-West Nigeria
Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as bases by gangs of armed bandits and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this affiliate started when pastoralists banded together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.
Clashes between pastoralists and predominantly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by ethnicity and religion, but their roots lie in competition for land and water.
- Clergy and religious leaders have been increasingly taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by financial motives than religious discrimination.
- A December 24th attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a distinct insurgency largely separate to the violence in the north-west.
Continuing Violence and Data
There have been thousands of events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about half of them targeting 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 innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”
Broader U.S. Foreign Posture
This action occurs amid a wider 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 first year of this presidency has seen strikes in multiple countries and a major military buildup in another region.
Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When questioned if more would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a fresh chapter of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is ongoing.”
