President Donald Trump announced that US forces carried out “powerful and deadly” strikes against Islamic State militants in northwestern Nigeria on Thursday, following his warning to the group to cease the killing of Christians in the region.
The Department of Defense stated that “multiple ISIS terrorists” were killed in the operation, which was conducted at the request of Nigerian authorities, though few details were disclosed.
The strikes targeted ISIS positions on Christmas Day, according to Trump.
“I have previously warned these terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughter of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was,” he wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“May God bless our military,” he added, saying, “MERRY CHRISTMAS to everyone, including the deceased terrorists, of whom there will be many more if their slaughter of Christians continues.”
The US Africa Command posted on X that it conducted the strike “at the request of Nigerian authorities in Sokoto State, killing multiple ISIS terrorists.”
Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth also took to X to commend his department’s readiness to act in Nigeria, expressing gratitude for the support and cooperation from the Nigerian government.
These strikes mark the first US military action in Nigeria under Trump’s administration, following his unexpected condemnation of Nigeria in October and November, when he stated that Christians in the country faced an “existential threat” amounting to “genocide.”
While some welcomed this diplomatic offensive, others interpreted it as exacerbating religious tensions in Africa’s most populous nation, which has experienced episodes of sectarian violence in the past.
The Nigerian government and independent analysts reject framing the country’s violence as religious persecution—a narrative often propagated by the Christian right in the United States and Europe.
However, Trump, highlighting what his administration describes as global persecution of Christians, emphasised that Washington was prepared to take military action in Nigeria to counter such killings.
This year, the United States reinstated Nigeria on its list of countries of “particular concern” regarding religious freedom and has imposed restrictions on visa issuance to Nigerians.
