American Warns of More Nigerian Airstrikes as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled further strikes against ISIS targets in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after American forces launched strikes 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 explicit last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria must end,” the defense secretary posted on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Grateful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Top Diplomat Describes Strikes as Collaborative Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the American military actions were “part of joint 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 constitutionally a secular state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who describe it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Intelligence and Coordination Preceding the Missions

Nigeria provided the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He detailed that he had spoken with his American opposite number, then contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, 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 work with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to stop the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom said the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in coordination with Nigerian authorities.

Background of Violence in North-West Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as bases by gangs of armed bandits and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this IS branch originated when pastoralists joined together to fight 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 resources.

• Priests and religious leaders have been increasingly taken hostage, though some specialists say this may be driven more by financial motives than sectarian hatred.
• A December 24th attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria killed at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate conflict largely separate to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Unrest and Statistics

There have been numerous events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about 50% of them affecting civilians, according to conflict monitoring 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 one religion. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Broader U.S. Foreign Posture

This intervention comes 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. nor Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any casualties in the recent 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.”