🔗 Share this article US Signals of Further Nigeria Airstrikes as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Joint Ongoing Operations'. The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional airstrikes against IS strongholds in north-western Nigeria. This follows hours after U.S. military forces launched strikes against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these actions as part of a campaign to end the slaughter of Christians. “The president was clear last month: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth stated on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!” The Nigerian Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of joint continuing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had previously alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed. Nigeria is constitutionally a non-religious state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Attacks 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 attack both Christians and Muslims. Information and Coordination Preceding 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 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 always been hoping for, to work 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 confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with local officials. 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 Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some analysts say this IS branch started when pastoralists banded together to combat bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly 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 been increasingly taken hostage, 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 separate conflict mostly unrelated 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 research 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 one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.” Broader U.S. Military Posture This intervention occurs amid a broader pattern of U.S. military activity 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 military actions in several countries and a major deployment of forces in another region. No official from the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When asked if more would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a new phase of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is continuing.”
The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional airstrikes against IS strongholds in north-western Nigeria. This follows hours after U.S. military forces launched strikes against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these actions as part of a campaign to end the slaughter of Christians. “The president was clear last month: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth stated on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!” The Nigerian Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of joint continuing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had previously alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed. Nigeria is constitutionally a non-religious state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Attacks 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 attack both Christians and Muslims. Information and Coordination Preceding 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 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 always been hoping for, to work 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 confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with local officials. 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 Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some analysts say this IS branch started when pastoralists banded together to combat bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly 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 been increasingly taken hostage, 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 separate conflict mostly unrelated 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 research 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 one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.” Broader U.S. Military Posture This intervention occurs amid a broader pattern of U.S. military activity 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 military actions in several countries and a major deployment of forces in another region. No official from the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When asked if more would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a new phase of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is continuing.”