US launches deadly strikes on Islamic State militants in Nigeria

Washington (Somalia Today) — The United States has launched a wave of “powerful and deadly” airstrikes against Islamic State targets in northwestern Nigeria, President Donald Trump announced on Thursday, describing the Christmas Day operation as a direct response to the “vicious killing” of Christians by jihadist groups.

The strikes mark a significant escalation in American military involvement in West Africa and come just weeks after the White House ordered the Pentagon to prepare military options to intervene in Nigeria’s decade-long insurgency.

“Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.

He added that the militants had been targeting “innocent Christians at levels not seen for many years,” warning that “our Country will not allow Radical Islamic Terrorism to prosper.”

A Defense Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed the operation was conducted in tandem with the Nigerian government.

The official said Nigerian authorities approved the strikes, which targeted known militant compounds in the country’s volatile northwest.

The operation follows a directive from Trump last month ordering the Pentagon to draw up target options. U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) subsequently identified specific insurgent compounds and forwarded the plans to the White House.

While the Pentagon declined to release immediate casualty figures or specific locations, the strikes targeted a region where Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and Boko Haram factions have long operated.

‘More to come’

While agreeing to bolster its forces with U.S. support, the Nigerian government has pushed back on the narrative that the violence is solely anti-Christian.

Officials in Abuja argue that armed groups indiscriminately target both Muslims and Christians, maintaining that U.S. claims of persecution oversimplify a complex security situation and ignore ongoing efforts to safeguard religious freedom.

Nigeria’s population is roughly split between a predominantly Muslim north and a Christian south, a dynamic that has long fueled communal tensions.

Despite these diplomatic differences, cooperation on the ground remains active. “The Pentagon worked with the government of Nigeria to carry out these strikes. These strikes were approved by the government of Nigeria,” a Pentagon official said.

U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth reinforced this partnership on X, thanking the Nigerian government for its support and adding a pointed warning to militants: “More to come…”

The Nigerian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Christmas violence

The strikes coincided with renewed violence in the country. Police reported that a suspected suicide bomber struck a mosque in Maiduguri in Nigeria’s northeast on Wednesday night, killing at least five people and injuring 35 others—underscoring the indiscriminate nature of the insurgency.

Earlier on Thursday, Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu posted a Christmas message on X calling for peace, “especially between individuals of differing religious beliefs.”

“I stand committed to doing everything within my power to enshrine religious freedom in Nigeria and to protect Christians, Muslims, and all Nigerians from violence,” Tinubu wrote.

The military action aligns with a renewed U.S. focus on “religious persecution” in Nigeria.

The State Department recently designated Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern” under the International Religious Freedom Act, a move that carries potential sanctions for governments that engage in or tolerate severe violations of religious freedom.

Trump had previously warned regarding the militants that “if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay.”

In his Thursday announcement, the president said U.S. forces had “executed numerous perfect strikes,” adding a holiday message: “MERRY CHRISTMAS to all, including the dead Terrorists.”

Security analysts question whether airstrikes alone can dismantle the insurgency, which has killed thousands of civilians—both Christian and Muslim—over the past decade.

Groups like ISWAP have increasingly targeted Christian communities, but they also kill Muslims they accuse of being insufficiently devout. The conflict has displaced millions and destabilized the Lake Chad Basin region.

Recent U.S. diplomatic moves have also increased pressure on Abuja. The State Department announced visa restrictions earlier this month for Nigerians believed to be complicit in mass killings or religious violence.

“May God bless our Military,” Trump wrote, signaling that further military action remains on the table if the violence continues.