US Issues Warning of Further Nigerian Strikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has indicated further military actions against Islamic State targets in northwest Nigeria. This comes a short time after American forces launched strikes against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to halt the killing of Christians.

“The commander-in-chief was clear previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” the defense secretary stated on a social platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Thankful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Foreign Minister Describes Actions as Collaborative Effort

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of joint continuing operations.” This comment came after Trump had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a secular 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 frame it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants attack both Christians and Muslims.

Intelligence and Collaboration Preceding the Airstrikes

Nigerian authorities provided the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a local broadcaster. He detailed that he had consulted with his American opposite number, before called the Nigerian president for authorization, and subsequently conferred with the American official again.

“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “This is what we’ve always been hoping for, to partner with the Americans, to cooperate 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 strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in concert with Nigerian authorities.

Context of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Forests 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 IS branch started when pastoralists joined together to combat bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Conflicts between Muslim herders and predominantly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in competition for resources.

• Priests and religious leaders have been increasingly taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A Christmas Eve suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria killed at least five people and injured dozens more, in a distinct conflict mostly separate to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Violence and Data

There have been numerous 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 most affected regions.

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

Broader U.S. Foreign Posture

This intervention occurs amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this administration. 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 major 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 additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is continuing.”