US Warns of Additional Nigeria Airstrikes as Abuja Speaks of 'Collaborative Ongoing Operations'.

The American Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional airstrikes against IS positions in north-western Nigeria. This comes a short time after U.S. military forces took action against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has characterized these actions as part of a mission to stop the killing of Christians.

“The president was explicit last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” the defense secretary wrote on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Grateful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Joint Operation

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

Nigeria is officially a non-religious state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who describe it as religious persecution. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Intelligence and Collaboration Behind the Airstrikes

Nigerian authorities supplied the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a local broadcaster. He explained that he had consulted with his American opposite number, before contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and subsequently conferred 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 partner with the Americans, to work with other countries, to combat terrorism, to end the killing of blameless Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africom confirmed the strikes in Sokoto state had been executed in concert with Nigerian authorities.

Context of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as bases by gangs of armed bandits and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this affiliate originated when herders banded together to fight bandits due to a absence 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 land and water.

• Clergy and religious leaders have been increasingly taken hostage, though some experts say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A December 24th suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate insurgency mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Violence and Data

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

Wider American Foreign Policy

This intervention comes amid a wider pattern of U.S. military activity overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “candidate 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.

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 fresh chapter of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”