American Issues Warning of Additional Nigerian Strikes as Abuja Talks of 'Collaborative Continuing Operations'.

The U.S. defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has signaled additional military actions against IS positions in north-western Nigeria. This comes hours after American forces conducted operations against militant camps. The ex-president Donald Trump has characterized these efforts as part of a mission to stop the killing of Christians.

“The president was explicit last month: the murder of defenseless Christians in Nigeria must end,” Hegseth posted on a social platform. “The Department of Defense is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight – on Christmas. More to come … Thankful for Abuja's backing and collaboration. Merry Christmas!”

Nigeria's Foreign Minister Frames Strikes as Joint Effort

Nigeria’s top diplomat, Yusuf Tuggar, remarked on Friday that the American military actions were “part of collaborative continuing operations.” This comment came after Trump had earlier accused Nigeria’s government of not doing enough to prevent 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 conservative groups in the United States, who describe it as sectarian targeting. The government in Abuja have pointed out that militants target both Christians and Muslims.

Information and Coordination Preceding the Airstrikes

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

“We have been collaborating extensively 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 death of blameless Nigerians … It’s a joint effort.”

The U.S. military’s Africa Command confirmed the operations in Sokoto state had been carried out in concert with local officials.

Context of Violence in Northwestern Nigeria

Wooded areas in Sokoto state, which borders Niger, have been used as bases by gangs of armed bandits and members of ISSP. Some observers say this IS branch originated 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 aggravated by ethnicity and religion, but their core causes lie in disputes for land and water.

• Clergy and religious leaders have been increasingly taken hostage, 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.

Continuing Violence and Statistics

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 emphasized that the mission was about “protecting Nigerians and innocent lives,” not one religion. “It is a joint operation,” he said. “It is not targeting any religion.”

Wider American Foreign Posture

This action occurs amid a wider pattern of U.S. military engagement overseas during this administration. Despite campaigning as a “champion of peace” who promised to extricate the U.S. from “foreign quagmires,” the first year of this term has seen military actions in several countries and a significant deployment of forces in another region.

No official from the U.S. or Nigerian authorities have disclosed if there were any casualties in the latest airstrikes. When questioned if additional actions would follow, Tuggar replied: “You can call it a new phase of an long-standing struggle. For us it is something that is continuing.”