US Signals of Further Nigerian Military Actions as Nigeria's Capital Speaks of 'Joint Ongoing Operations'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has signaled further strikes against ISIS positions in north-western Nigeria. This follows hours after American forces launched strikes against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has described these efforts as part of a campaign to end the killing of Christians.

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

Nigeria's Top Diplomat Describes Actions as Joint Effort

Nigeria’s foreign minister, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of joint ongoing operations.” This comment followed after Trump had previously accused Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to stop Christians from being killed.

Nigeria is constitutionally a secular state with a population nearly divided between Muslims and Christians. Attacks against Christians has garnered focus from religious groups in the United States, who frame it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have noted that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Collaboration Preceding the Missions

Nigerian authorities supplied the intelligence for the airstrikes in Sokoto state, Tuggar informed a local broadcaster. He detailed that he had consulted with his U.S. counterpart, then contacted the Nigerian president for authorization, and then 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 work with the Americans, to work with other countries, to combat terrorism, to stop the death of innocent Nigerians … It’s a collaborative effort.”

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

Context of Violence in North-West Nigeria

Forests in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as hideouts by criminal groups and members of Islamic State – Sahel Province. Some observers say this IS branch started when herders banded together to fight bandits due to a lack of state support. The region is mostly Muslim.

Clashes between pastoralists and predominantly Christian farming communities have been aggravated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in competition for land and water.

• Clergy and pastors have increasingly been kidnapped for ransom, though some experts say this may be driven more by financial motives than sectarian hatred.
• A Christmas Eve suicide bombing at a mosque in north-east Nigeria took the lives of at least five people and wounded dozens more, in a separate conflict largely separate to the violence in the north-west.

Ongoing Violence and Data

There have been numerous events of violence in Nigeria this year, with about 50% of them targeting civilians, according to research data. States like Katsina and Sokoto have been among the hardest-hit regions.

Tuggar stressed 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.”

Broader U.S. Foreign Policy

This intervention comes amid a broader pattern of American engagement overseas during this period. Despite campaigning as a “candidate 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 questioned if additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a fresh chapter of an old conflict. For us it is something that is ongoing.”