US Signals of Additional Nigeria Military Actions as Nigeria's Capital Speaks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled new strikes against IS targets in north-western Nigeria. This comes a short time after U.S. military forces launched strikes against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these actions as part of a mission to stop the slaughter of Christians.

“The commander-in-chief was clear last month: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” Hegseth wrote on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Joint Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This statement came after the former U.S. leader had previously accused Nigeria’s government of failing to stop 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 drawn attention from religious groups in the United States, who describe it as sectarian targeting. Nigerian authorities have noted 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 local broadcaster. He explained that he had spoken with his American opposite number, before contacted the Nigerian president for approval, and then spoke with the American official again.

“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “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 blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom said the strikes in Sokoto state had been carried out in coordination with local officials.

Context of Conflict in North-West Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as bases by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some analysts say this IS branch originated when herders banded 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.

• Priests and pastors have increasingly been kidnapped for ransom, though some experts say this may be driven more by financial motives 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 conflict largely unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Unrest and Statistics

There have been thousands of events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about half of them affecting civilians, according to research data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the hardest-hit regions.

Tuggar stressed that the mission 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 Policy

This action comes amid a wider pattern of American engagement overseas during this period. Despite campaigning as a “candidate of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “endless wars,” the first year of this term has seen strikes in multiple countries and a significant deployment of forces in another region.

Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the recent 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.”