Our Reporter, Abuja
The United States has carried out coordinated air strikes against Islamic State (IS) targets in North-Western Nigeria, in what both Washington and Abuja describe as a joint counter-terrorism operation. US President Donald Trump announced the strikes, calling them “powerful and deadly,” and said the US military had carried out “numerous perfect strikes” against what he described as IS fighters.
Trump accused the group of killing innocent Christians and said the US would not allow “Radical Islamic Terrorism to prosper.” US Africa Command (Africom) later confirmed that the strikes took place on Thursday in Sokoto State and were conducted in coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Nigeria’s government has moved quickly to frame the operation as part of broader security cooperation and to reject any suggestion that it was religiously motivated.
In an official press release, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said: “Nigerian authorities remain engaged in structured security cooperation with international partners, including the United States of America, in addressing the persistent threat of terrorism and violent extremism. This has led to precision hits on terrorist targets in Nigeria by air strikes in the North West.”
The ministry stressed that the cooperation was carried out with respect for Nigeria’s sovereignty and international law, adding: “All counter-terrorism efforts are guided by the primacy of protecting civilian lives, safeguarding national unity, and upholding the rights and dignity of all citizens, irrespective of faith or ethnicity.”
Foreign Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar described the strikes as a joint operation based on Nigerian intelligence and said they “have nothing to do with a particular religion.”
He noted that the operation had been planned for some time and said further action would depend on decisions taken by the leadership of both countries.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth thanked Nigeria for its support and cooperation, while the Pentagon released a short video appearing to show a missile launch linked to the operation.
Trump’s comments come amid growing claims in some US political circles that Christians in Nigeria are being specifically targeted. He recently designated Nigeria a “country of particular concern” for religious freedom, citing what he called an “existential threat” to Christians, though no evidence was provided. Nigerian officials and human rights groups have pushed back strongly against this narrative.
Nigeria is roughly evenly divided between Christians and Muslims, and data from violence-monitoring organisations show that most victims of jihadist violence in the country have been Muslims. President Bola Tinubu has repeatedly said that insecurity affects Nigerians “across faiths and regions” and has insisted that the country remains committed to religious tolerance.
Nigeria has faced more than a decade of insurgency from jihadist groups such as Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province, particularly in the North-East, alongside banditry in the North-West and deadly communal clashes in central regions. Authorities say cooperation with international partners, including the US, remains focused on combating terrorism while protecting civilians and preserving national unity.
