American Warns of Further Nigerian Strikes as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Continuing Operations'.

The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled further military actions against Islamic State positions in northwest Nigeria. This follows hours after American forces conducted operations against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these actions as part of a campaign to halt the killing of Christians.

“The commander-in-chief was clear last month: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth stated on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. Additional actions will follow … Grateful for Abuja's support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Joint Effort

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, said on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment came after Trump had earlier alleged Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has drawn attention from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Coordination Preceding the Airstrikes

Nigeria provided the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a local broadcaster. He explained that he had consulted with his American opposite number, then contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and subsequently conferred with the American official again.

“We have been collaborating extensively with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the death of innocent 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 Nigerian authorities.

Context of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as bases by criminal groups and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some analysts say this IS branch started when pastoralists joined together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Conflicts between Muslim herders and mostly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by ethnicity and religion, but their roots lie in competition for land and water.

• Priests and pastors have increasingly been kidnapped for ransom, though some experts say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A December 24th attack at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a distinct conflict mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Violence and Statistics

There have been thousands of incidents 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 stressed that the operation was about “protecting Nigerians and civilians,” not one religion. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not aimed at any religion.”

Wider U.S. Foreign Policy

This intervention comes amid a wider pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this period. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “endless wars,” the first year of this term has seen military actions in multiple countries and a significant military buildup in another region.

No official from the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any casualties in the latest 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.”