US Warns of More Nigeria Military Actions as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Collaborative Continuing Operations'.

The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has warned of new military actions against ISIS strongholds in north-western Nigeria. This comes hours after American forces conducted operations against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has characterized these efforts as part of a campaign to halt the killing of Christians.

“The commander-in-chief was clear previously: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” the defense secretary wrote on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Thankful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

The Nigerian Foreign Minister Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of joint ongoing operations.” This statement came after the former U.S. leader had previously 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. Violence against Christians has drawn attention 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 Collaboration Preceding the Airstrikes

Nigerian authorities provided the information for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He detailed that he had consulted with his American opposite number, before contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and then conferred 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 fight terrorism, to end the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

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

Context of Violence in North-West Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by gangs of armed bandits and members of ISSP. Some observers say this IS branch originated when pastoralists joined together to combat bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Conflicts between Muslim herders and predominantly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in competition for resources.

• Priests and religious leaders have increasingly been taken hostage, though some specialists say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A Christmas Eve attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a distinct conflict largely separate to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Unrest and Statistics

There have been thousands of incidents 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 most affected regions.

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

Wider U.S. Military Posture

This action occurs amid a broader pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the first year of this term has seen strikes in multiple countries and a significant deployment of forces in another region.

No official from the U.S. nor Nigerian authorities have revealed if there were any fatalities in the recent airstrikes. When questioned 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.”