US Issues Warning of Further Nigerian Military Actions as Abuja Speaks of 'Collaborative Continuing Missions'.

The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has indicated further airstrikes against IS targets in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after American forces took action against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these efforts as part of a mission to stop the killing of Christians.

“The president was clear previously: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth wrote on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Foreign Minister Describes Strikes as Collaborative Operation

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment came after Trump had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to stop Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a non-religious 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 attack both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Collaboration Behind the Airstrikes

Nigeria provided the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He detailed that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, then called the Nigerian president for authorization, and then conferred with the American official again.

“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to work with other countries, to combat terrorism, to stop the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in concert with local officials.

Context of Conflict in Northwestern Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by gangs of armed bandits and members of ISSP. Some observers say this IS branch started when herders joined together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

Clashes between pastoralists and predominantly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by ethnicity and religion, but their roots lie in disputes for land and water.

• Priests and religious leaders have been increasingly taken hostage, though some specialists say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than religious discrimination.
• A Christmas Eve attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a separate insurgency 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 emphasized that the operation 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. Foreign Posture

This action comes amid a broader pattern of American activity overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “endless wars,” the initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in several countries and a significant deployment of forces in another region.

No official from the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any fatalities in the latest airstrikes. When questioned if additional actions would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”