US Issues Warning of Additional Nigeria Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Continuing Missions'.

The American defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has warned of additional strikes against Islamic State strongholds in northwest Nigeria. This comes a short time after U.S. military forces conducted operations against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has framed these efforts as part of a campaign to halt the slaughter of Christians.

“The president was clear last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” the defense secretary posted on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Nigerian government backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Foreign Minister Frames Strikes as Joint Operation

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of joint continuing operations.” This statement followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is officially a secular state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has drawn attention from conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have noted that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Intelligence and Collaboration Behind 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 U.S. counterpart, before contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and then spoke with the American official again.

“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve long desired, to partner with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the death of blameless 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 local officials.

Background of Violence in Northwestern 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 pastoralists banded together to combat bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

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

• Priests and religious leaders have increasingly been taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by financial motives than religious discrimination.
• A Christmas Eve attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a distinct insurgency mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Violence and Data

There have been thousands of incidents 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 stressed that the operation was about “protecting Nigerians and civilians,” not a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Wider U.S. Foreign Policy

This intervention occurs amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this period. Despite campaigning as a “candidate of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “endless wars,” the first year of this term has seen military actions in multiple countries and a major deployment of forces in another region.

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