🔗 Share this article US Signals of More Nigeria Military Actions as Nigeria's Capital Talks of 'Joint Ongoing Operations'. The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has signaled further airstrikes against IS positions in northwest Nigeria. This comes a short time after U.S. military forces took action against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a mission to end the killing of Christians. “The commander-in-chief was clear last month: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” Hegseth wrote on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Grateful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!” Nigeria's Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had previously accused Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed. Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has drawn attention from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have pointed out that armed groups attack both Christians and Muslims. Intelligence and Coordination Behind the Missions Nigeria supplied the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He explained that he had spoken with his American opposite number, then called the Nigerian president for authorization, and then conferred with the American official again. “We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to fight terrorism, to stop 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 local officials. Context of Conflict in North-West Nigeria Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some analysts say this affiliate started when pastoralists joined together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim. Conflicts between Muslim herders and mostly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in competition for land and water. Clergy and religious leaders have increasingly been taken hostage, 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 took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate conflict mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west. Ongoing Violence and Data There have been numerous events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about half of them affecting civilians, according to research data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the most affected regions. Tuggar emphasized that the operation was about “safeguarding Nigerians and innocent lives,” not one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.” Wider U.S. Military Posture This action comes amid a broader 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 initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in multiple countries and a major deployment of forces in another region. Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any casualties in the recent 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 continuing.”
The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has signaled further airstrikes against IS positions in northwest Nigeria. This comes a short time after U.S. military forces took action against insurgent bases. The former president Donald Trump has framed these actions as part of a mission to end the killing of Christians. “The commander-in-chief was clear last month: the killing of defenseless Christians in Nigeria has to stop,” Hegseth wrote on a social media platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS discovered tonight – on Christmas. There is more ahead … Grateful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!” Nigeria's Top Diplomat Frames Strikes as Collaborative Operation Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This statement followed after Trump had previously accused Nigeria’s government of failing to prevent Christians from being killed. Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state with a population almost evenly split between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has drawn attention from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have pointed out that armed groups attack both Christians and Muslims. Intelligence and Coordination Behind the Missions Nigeria supplied the information for the strikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar told a television network. He explained that he had spoken with his American opposite number, then called the Nigerian president for authorization, and then conferred with the American official again. “We have been working closely with the Americans,” Tuggar stated. “This is what we’ve long desired, to work with the Americans, to cooperate with other countries, to fight terrorism, to stop 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 local officials. Context of Conflict in North-West Nigeria Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which is adjacent to Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of ISSP. Some analysts say this affiliate started when pastoralists joined together to fight bandits due to a absence of state support. The region is mostly Muslim. Conflicts between Muslim herders and mostly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by communal and sectarian factors, but their core causes lie in competition for land and water. Clergy and religious leaders have increasingly been taken hostage, 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 took the lives of at least five people and injured dozens more, in a separate conflict mostly unrelated to the violence in the north-west. Ongoing Violence and Data There have been numerous events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about half of them affecting civilians, according to research data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the most affected regions. Tuggar emphasized that the operation was about “safeguarding Nigerians and innocent lives,” not one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.” Wider U.S. Military Posture This action comes amid a broader 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 initial period of this presidency has seen military actions in multiple countries and a major deployment of forces in another region. Neither the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any casualties in the recent 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 continuing.”