US Signals of Further Nigeria Strikes as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has warned of additional military actions against IS targets in north-western Nigeria. This follows a short time after American forces conducted operations against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these efforts as part of a campaign to end the killing of Christians.

“The commander-in-chief was clear previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth stated on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Collaborative 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 earlier accused Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is officially a secular state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have noted that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Collaboration Behind the Missions

Nigerian authorities supplied the information for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He explained that he had spoken with his American opposite number, before called the Nigerian president for approval, and subsequently spoke with the American official again.

“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “This is what we’ve always been hoping for, to partner with the Americans, to work with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

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

Background of Violence in North-West 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 herders banded together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

Conflicts between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by communal and sectarian factors, but their roots lie in disputes for land and water.

• Clergy and religious leaders have increasingly been taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than religious discrimination.
• A Christmas Eve attack 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 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 hardest-hit regions.

Tuggar emphasized that the mission was about “protecting Nigerians and civilians,” not a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”

Broader U.S. Foreign Policy

This action occurs amid a wider pattern of American activity overseas during this administration. Despite running as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “endless wars,” the first year of this term has seen military actions in several countries and a major deployment of forces in another region.

No official from the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the latest airstrikes. When asked if additional actions would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a new phase of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is continuing.”