US Warns of More Nigerian Airstrikes as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Operations'.

The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has indicated additional military actions against IS targets in north-western Nigeria. This comes hours after U.S. military forces conducted operations against militant camps. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a campaign to end the slaughter of Christians.

“The president was explicit previously: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” Hegseth stated on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Grateful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Foreign Minister Frames Actions as Collaborative Effort

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the U.S. strikes were “part of collaborative ongoing operations.” This statement came after Trump had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to prevent Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is officially a secular state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Violence against Christians has garnered focus from conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. Nigerian authorities have pointed out that militants attack both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Coordination Preceding the Missions

Nigerian authorities supplied the intelligence for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a local broadcaster. He explained that he had consulted with his American opposite number, before contacted the Nigerian president for approval, and subsequently conferred with the American official again.

“We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar said. “This is what we’ve long desired, to partner with the Americans, to work with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the killing of innocent Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

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

Background of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as bases by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some analysts say this IS branch started when herders banded together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

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

• Priests and pastors have increasingly been kidnapped for ransom, 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 distinct insurgency mostly separate to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Unrest and Data

There have been thousands of 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 most affected regions.

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

Wider U.S. Foreign Posture

This intervention comes amid a wider pattern of American engagement overseas during this period. Despite running as a “candidate of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “endless wars,” the initial period of this presidency has seen strikes in several countries and a major military buildup in another region.

Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any fatalities in the latest airstrikes. When asked 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.”