The United States military conducted a series of airstrikes against Islamic State-linked militants in Nigeria’s northwestern Sokoto State on December 25. U.S. President Donald Trump announced the operation on social media, describing the strikes as "powerful and deadly" and aimed at "decimating" every targeted camp. While the exact number of casualties remains unconfirmed, U.S. Africa Command and Nigerian officials reported that multiple militants were killed during the raids.
The operation targeted the Lakurawa group, a smaller jihadist faction that has recently established a presence in the remote Tangaza area near the border with Niger. Local officials in Sokoto confirmed that the strikes hit several terrorist camps, prompting some fighters to flee across the border. The U.S. Department of Defense supported the announcement by releasing a brief video showing a missile launch from a naval vessel, though specific details regarding the number of locations hit were initially provided by reports of over 70 targets in a similar recent U.S. intervention in Syria.
Discrepancies emerged regarding the timing and motivation of the strikes. President Trump told reporters he specifically ordered the action on Christmas Day as a "Christmas present," linking the military response to his previous warnings about the killing of Christians in the region. However, Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar stated the timing was not related to the holiday, noting that the operation had been planned for some time based on intelligence provided by Nigeria.
Nigeria’s information ministry described the event as a joint operation conducted with the explicit approval of President Bola Tinubu. Despite the cooperation, the Nigerian government has previously pushed back against the Trump administration's characterization of the country as a site of religious genocide. While the U.S. administration has labeled Nigeria a "country of particular concern" due to religious freedom violations, Nigerian authorities maintain that jihadist violence affects both Muslim and Christian communities across the nation.
During the strikes, debris from munitions reportedly fell in the village of Jabo in Sokoto and as far south as Offa in Kwara State. Local eyewitnesses reported seeing objects crashing into fields, though no civilian casualties were reported in those areas. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth expressed gratitude for Nigeria's cooperation, while Minister Tuggar indicated that further strikes could not be ruled out as part of an ongoing security partnership to address regional extremism.
