US Issues Warning of More Nigeria Military Actions as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Operations'.

The U.S. Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled new strikes against Islamic State positions in northwest Nigeria. This comes hours after U.S. military forces conducted operations against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has framed these efforts as part of a mission to stop the slaughter of Christians.

“The president was explicit previously: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” the defense secretary posted on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Grateful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Joint Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, stated on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative ongoing operations.” This statement followed after the former U.S. leader had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of failing to stop Christians from being killed.

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

Intelligence and Collaboration Preceding the Missions

Nigerian authorities provided the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He explained that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, then called the Nigerian president for authorization, 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 end the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

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

Context of Conflict 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 ISSP. Some analysts say this IS branch originated when herders banded together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Clashes between pastoralists and mostly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in disputes for land and water.

• Clergy and pastors have increasingly been taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by financial motives than religious discrimination.
• A December 24th suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria killed at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a separate conflict largely separate to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Unrest and Statistics

There have been numerous 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 operation was about “safeguarding Nigerians and innocent lives,” not one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Broader U.S. Military Policy

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

Neither the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the latest airstrikes. When questioned if more would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”