US Nigeria News: The United States carried out strikes on Islamic State militants in north-west Nigeria after the US President Donald Trump said the group had been attacking Christian communities.
Donald Trump said the operation was aimed at fighters he accused of carrying out killings, according to reports from the Reuters.
What exactly happened
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the US military launched what he called a “powerful and deadly strike” against Islamic State militants. He said the militants had been “viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians”, and that US forces “executed numerous perfect strikes”.
The strikes took place in Sokoto state in northern Nigeria, the BBC reported. The US Africa Command said the action was carried out in coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Who was involved
Nigeria’s foreign ministry said the operation was part of ongoing security cooperation with the United States, including intelligence sharing and joint planning to target militant groups.
Story continues below this ad
Meanwhile, US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Thursday he was “grateful for Nigerian government support & cooperation”.
“Merry Christmas!” he added, writing on X.
The President was clear last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria (and elsewhere) must end.
The @DeptofWar is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight — on Christmas. More to come…
Grateful for Nigerian government support & cooperation.
Merry Christmas! https://t.co/k5Q3Qd4ClE
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) December 25, 2025
Nigerian officials told the BBC that the operation targeted terrorist groups, and said violence in the country affects both Muslims and Christians.
How the situation is viewed in Nigeria
The Nigerian government has previously rejected claims that the conflict is mainly about religion. Analysts cited by the Reuters say violence in parts of the country is also linked to land disputes between herders and farmers, as well as criminal attacks and kidnappings.
— Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Nigeria 🇳🇬 (@NigeriaMFA) December 26, 2025
Nigeria is officially a secular country but its population is almost evenly divided between Muslims (53%) and Christians (45%). Violence against Christians has drawn significant international attention, especially among the religious right in America, and it has often been framed as religious persecution.
However, Nigeria’s government rejects framing the country’s violence in terms of religious persecution, saying in the past that armed groups target both Muslims and Christians, and US claims that Christians face persecution do not represent a complex security situation and ignore efforts to safeguard religious freedom. But the government has previously agreed to work with the US to bolster its forces against militant groups.
Monitoring groups quoted by the BBC say there is no clear evidence that Christians are being targeted more than Muslims, although jihadist groups such as Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province have carried out deadly attacks for more than a decade.
