US Signals of Additional Nigerian Airstrikes as Nigeria's Capital Speaks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Operations'.

The American defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has warned of further military actions 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 mission to end the killing of Christians.

“The president was clear previously: the murder of innocent Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” the defense secretary wrote on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Grateful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Foreign Minister Describes Strikes as Joint Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This statement came after Trump had earlier accused 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. Violence against Christians has garnered focus 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.

Information and Collaboration Preceding the Airstrikes

Nigerian authorities supplied the information for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He explained that he had spoken with his U.S. counterpart, before called the Nigerian president for authorization, and subsequently spoke 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 cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to stop the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom confirmed the operations in Sokoto state had been carried out in concert with local officials.

Context of Violence in North-West 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 affiliate originated when pastoralists joined together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

Clashes between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in disputes 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 December 24th suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a separate conflict mostly separate to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Unrest and Statistics

There have been numerous 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 joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Wider U.S. Foreign Posture

This action occurs amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in multiple countries and a significant military buildup in another region.

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