US Warns of More Nigerian Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.

The American defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has indicated new military actions against IS positions in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after U.S. military forces launched strikes against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to halt the slaughter of Christians.

“The president was explicit last month: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” the defense secretary wrote on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Grateful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Foreign Minister Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment followed after the former U.S. leader had previously accused Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to stop Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from conservative groups in the United States, who frame it as religious persecution. Nigerian authorities have pointed out that armed groups target both Christians and Muslims.

Intelligence and Collaboration Behind the Airstrikes

Nigeria provided the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He explained that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, then contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and subsequently conferred with the American official again.

“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve always been hoping for, to work 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.

Context of Conflict in Northwestern Nigeria

Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by gangs of armed bandits and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some analysts say this affiliate started when pastoralists joined together to combat bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Conflicts between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in competition for land and water.

• Clergy and pastors have increasingly been taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A Christmas Eve 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.

Continuing Violence and Data

There have been numerous events 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 a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”

Wider American Foreign Posture

This intervention comes amid a wider pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the initial period of this presidency has seen strikes in several countries and a significant military buildup in another region.

Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When questioned if additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is ongoing.”