US StrIKES ISIS IN nigeria
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December 26, 2025
In a dramatic escalation of counterterrorism efforts, the United States launched precision airstrikes against Islamic State (ISIS) militants in northwest Nigeria on Christmas Day, December 25, 2025. The operation, described by President Donald Trump as a "powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum," targeted terrorist camps in the volatile Sokoto region, marking a rare public display of U.S. military action on African soil. According to initial assessments from U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), the strikes killed multiple ISIS fighters, disrupting what officials described as a growing threat to regional stability and Christian communities.
The strikes came amid heightened tensions following Trump's recent warnings on Truth Social, where he decried alleged ISIS-orchestrated attacks on Nigerian Christians and vowed swift retaliation if the Nigerian government failed to act. "If Nigeria doesn't clean this up, we will—big league," Trump posted earlier in the week, referencing reports of sectarian violence in the northwest. This rhetoric appeared to pressure Abuja into cooperation, averting what could have been a unilateral U.S. incursion and potential diplomatic fallout.
Nigeria's Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusuf Tuggar, confirmed the strikes as a "joint operation" during a press briefing in Abuja on Friday morning, emphasizing that the actions were requested by Nigerian authorities to support ongoing efforts against ISIS-West Africa (ISIS-WA), the local affiliate of the global jihadist network. "This was not an imposition but a partnership to safeguard our sovereignty and combat terrorism," Tuggar stated, clarifying that intelligence shared between the two nations pinpointed ISIS training camps near the village of Jabo in Sokoto State.
ISIS-WA, which pledged allegiance to the Islamic State caliphate in 2015, has evolved from the remnants of Boko Haram into a formidable force in Nigeria's northwest and neighboring Sahel countries. The group has been responsible for a surge in ambushes, kidnappings, and bombings, including a string of attacks on Christian villages during the holiday season that killed dozens. U.S. officials estimate ISIS-WA controls pockets of territory spanning over 20,000 square kilometers, exploiting porous borders and local grievances over poverty and ethnic tensions.
The airstrikes involved U.S. MQ-9 Reaper drones operating from a base in Niger, launching Hellfire missiles at three confirmed ISIS sites around 2 a.m. local time. Eyewitnesses in Jabo described a night lit by explosions, with homes shaking from the blasts and the sky glowing red. "We thought it was the end of the world," said Aisha Mohammed, a local farmer, whose family huddled in a mud-brick shelter as secondary fires raged. No civilian casualties were reported in the initial AFRICOM assessment, but humanitarian groups expressed concern over potential collateral damage in densely populated rural areas.
This operation underscores Trump's aggressive pivot toward Africa in his second term. Unlike the more restrained drone campaigns of the Obama and Biden eras, which focused on advisory roles, these strikes signal a willingness to project power directly, echoing Trump's "America First" doctrine applied to global hotspots. Analysts note that the timing, just days after Trump's inauguration, serves as both a domestic show of strength and a message to adversaries like China, which has expanded its footprint in Nigeria through Belt and Road investments.
For Nigeria, the strikes are a double-edged sword. President Bola Tinubu's government, facing criticism for its slow response to insurgency, gains a tactical win but risks stoking anti-Western sentiment in the Muslim-majority north. Protests erupted in Lagos on Friday, with demonstrators chanting against "imperialist bombings," while Christian leaders in the south hailed the action as divine intervention. "This is justice for our persecuted brothers," said Archbishop Ignatius Kaigama of Abuja.
Internationally, the European Union and United Nations called for transparency, urging an independent probe into the strikes' impact on civilians. Al Jazeera's live coverage highlighted the operation's precision but warned of escalation, as ISIS-WA vowed revenge in a propaganda video released hours after the blasts.
As smoke clears over Sokoto, questions linger about the strikes' long-term efficacy. AFRICOM's Gen. Michael Langley praised the operation as a "decisive blow," but experts caution that airstrikes alone cannot dismantle ISIS-WA's ideological roots or address underlying issues like unemployment and climate-driven resource scarcity fueling recruitment. Nigeria has pledged to deploy ground troops to secure the sites, but corruption and military fatigue could undermine these efforts.
In a region where jihadist groups have outlasted foreign interventions—from France's Operation Barkhane to the U.S.'s own Sahel pullback—this Christmas offensive may buy time, but it won't end the war. For now, it stands as a stark reminder: in the shadow of global powers, local battles rage on, with innocents caught in the crossfire.