The United States carried out airstrikes in parts of northwest Nigeria on Christmas night, targeting Islamic State (ISIS) militants, President Donald Trump announced.
In a statement released late Thursday, President Trump said the operation targeted ISIS fighters he accused of being responsible for deadly attacks against Christian communities.
In a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, President Trump said he had ordered what he described as a “powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum” operating in Nigeria’s Sokoto State, asserting that the extremist fighters had been viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians at levels not seen for many years, and even centuries.
“Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief… there was hell to pay, and tonight, there was,” the president wrote.
He described the strikes as decisive and warned that further military action would follow if the violence continues.
“The United States will not stand by while radical terrorists murder innocent people,” Trump said, adding that the operation was conducted under his authority as commander-in-chief.
The U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) confirmed the strikes in a post on X (formerly Twitter), saying the operation was conducted in coordination with Nigerian authorities, reportedly at the request of Nigeria’s government, and that multiple ISIS militants were killed.
A Pentagon video released shows what U.S. officials describe as munitions fired at known extremist camps in the region, though independent verification of the footage and casualty figures remains limited at this time.
Details on the scale of the operation, including the number of casualties and whether civilians were affected, were not immediately available.
Nigerian authorities have not released independent casualty figures.
A spokesperson for Nigeria’s security agencies acknowledged continued cooperation with international partners but emphasized that the country remains in charge of its counterterrorism operations.
Nigeria has faced persistent insecurity from extremist groups for more than a decade, including Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP).
While violence has often taken on a religious dimension, Nigerian officials and analysts frequently note that attacks affect both Christian and Muslim communities, particularly in rural and conflict-prone regions.
The Christmas night strikes came amid renewed international attention on Nigeria’s security challenges, with banditry, kidnappings, and militant attacks stretching security forces across several states.
President Trump has repeatedly criticized Nigeria’s handling of extremist violence, particularly attacks on Christians, a position that has drawn mixed reactions from Nigerian officials and rights groups.President Trump has spent weeks criticizing the Nigerian government for what he claims is a failure to protect Christian communities from extremist violence.
Earlier this year, his administration designated Nigeria a “country of particular concern” over alleged religious persecution, especially targeting Christians, and threatened military action if the situation did not improve.
In Thursday’s announcement, Trump reiterated his stance that the United States will not tolerate radical Islamist terrorism, framing the strikes as part of a broader commitment to counter violent extremist threats globally.
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged the operation as part of “structured security cooperation” with international partners, emphasizing intelligence sharing and strategic coordination in efforts to counter terrorism and violent extremism.
However, Nigerian officials have consistently stressed the complexity of the country’s security landscape, noting that violent attacks affect both Christians and Muslims, and rejecting narratives that single out one religious community.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in a Christmas message posted earlier in the day, called for national peace and reiterated his commitment to protecting all Nigerians regardless of faith, urging citizens to come together to end the cycle of violence
Nigeria has long been beset by a complex web of security challenges, including insurgencies by Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), ethnic militia clashes, and criminal banditry.
These groups have been responsible for thousands of deaths and mass kidnappings in recent years.
Just hours before the U.S. strikes, a suspected suicide bombing at a mosque in northeastern Nigeria killed at least five people and injured dozens more, underscoring the persistent threat from extremist groups.
As details continue to emerge, the international community is watching closely to see how this intervention impacts Nigeria’s security dynamics and broader U.S.–Africa relations.
