American Warns of Further Nigeria Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Joint Ongoing Operations'.

The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled new strikes against Islamic State strongholds in northwest Nigeria. This comes hours after U.S. military forces conducted operations against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to halt the killing of Christians.

“The president was explicit last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria must end,” Hegseth stated on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Foreign Minister Frames Strikes as Collaborative Effort

Nigeria’s top diplomat, 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 accused Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is officially a non-religious state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks 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 Coordination Preceding the Airstrikes

Nigeria supplied the intelligence for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He explained that he had spoken with his U.S. counterpart, before contacted the Nigerian president for approval, 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 partner with the Americans, to work with other countries, to fight terrorism, to stop the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom said the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in concert with Nigerian authorities.

Background of Conflict in Northwestern Nigeria

Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this IS branch started when pastoralists joined together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

Conflicts between pastoralists and predominantly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their roots lie in competition for land and water.

• Clergy and pastors have been increasingly taken hostage, though some specialists say this may be driven more by financial motives than sectarian hatred.
• A December 24th attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria killed at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate insurgency mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Violence and Data

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 stressed that the mission was about “safeguarding Nigerians and civilians,” not one religion. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”

Wider U.S. Foreign Policy

This intervention comes amid a broader pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this period. Despite running as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the first year of this presidency has seen strikes in several countries and a major deployment of forces in another region.

No official from the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any casualties in the recent airstrikes. When asked 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.”