US Signals of More Nigeria Airstrikes as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has signaled further military actions against ISIS strongholds in northwest Nigeria. This comes hours after U.S. military forces took action against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these actions as part of a campaign to halt the killing of Christians.

“The commander-in-chief was explicit last month: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” the defense secretary posted on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Thankful for Nigerian government backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Joint Effort

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the American military actions were “part of joint continuing operations.” This statement followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is officially 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. Nigerian authorities have pointed out that armed groups attack both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Coordination Behind the Missions

Nigerian authorities supplied the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He explained that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, before contacted the Nigerian president for approval, and then conferred with the American official again.

“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to work with other countries, to fight terrorism, to end the killing of innocent Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africa Command confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in concert with Nigerian authorities.

Background of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some analysts say this IS branch started when herders joined together to combat bandits due to a absence 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 core causes lie in competition for land and water.

• Priests and pastors have increasingly been kidnapped for ransom, though some specialists say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A Christmas Eve suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a distinct insurgency largely separate to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Violence and Statistics

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

Wider American Military Posture

This action occurs amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this period. Despite running as a “champion of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “endless wars,” the first year of this presidency has seen strikes in several 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 asked 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 continuing.”