US Issues Warning of Additional Nigerian Airstrikes as Abuja Talks of 'Joint Continuing Operations'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has warned of additional airstrikes against ISIS positions in northwest Nigeria. This follows a short time after U.S. military forces took action against insurgent bases. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these actions as part of a mission to end the killing of Christians.

“The president was explicit last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria needs to cease,” the defense secretary posted on a social media platform. “The Pentagon is constantly prepared, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Grateful for Nigerian government backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of joint continuing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of failing to stop Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is officially a secular state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks 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.

Information and Collaboration Preceding the Missions

Nigeria provided the intelligence for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a television network. He explained that he had spoken with his American opposite number, before contacted the Nigerian president for approval, 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 killing of innocent Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”

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

Background of Conflict in Northwestern Nigeria

Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by gangs of armed bandits and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this IS branch started when herders banded together to combat bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is predominantly Muslim.

Conflicts between pastoralists and predominantly Christian farming communities have been exacerbated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in competition for resources.

• Priests and pastors have increasingly been taken hostage, though some specialists say this may be driven more by criminal incentives than sectarian hatred.
• A Christmas Eve suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria killed at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a distinct conflict largely unrelated to the violence in the north-west.

Continuing Unrest and Data

There have been thousands of events 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 innocent lives,” not a single faith. “It is a collaborative mission,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Wider U.S. Foreign Posture

This intervention comes amid a wider pattern of American engagement overseas during this administration. Despite running as a “candidate of peace” who promised to withdraw the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in several countries and a significant 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 responded: “You can call it a new phase of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”