American Signals of Additional Nigerian Airstrikes as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Joint Ongoing Missions'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional airstrikes against IS targets in north-western Nigeria. This follows a short time after U.S. military forces took action against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to stop the slaughter 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 media platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Thankful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Top Diplomat Frames Actions as Joint Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the American military actions were “part of joint ongoing operations.” This comment came after Trump had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a non-religious state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has drawn attention from conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. Nigerian authorities have noted that armed groups attack both Christians and Muslims.

Intelligence and Coordination Behind the Missions

Nigerian authorities supplied the intelligence for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He detailed that he had spoken with his U.S. counterpart, then contacted the Nigerian president for approval, and subsequently 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 killing of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom confirmed the operations in Sokoto state had been carried out in concert with Nigerian authorities.

Background of Conflict in North-West Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some observers say this IS branch started when herders joined 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 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 criminal incentives than religious discrimination.
• A Christmas Eve attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria killed at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a separate insurgency largely unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Unrest and Data

There have been numerous 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 emphasized that the operation was about “safeguarding Nigerians and innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”

Broader American Foreign Policy

This intervention comes amid a broader pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “candidate of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “endless wars,” the first year of this presidency has seen military actions in multiple countries and a significant deployment of forces in another region.

Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any casualties in the recent airstrikes. When questioned if additional actions would follow, Tuggar responded: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is continuing.”