US Launches Military Strikes on Islamic State in Nigeria

Updated by Faith Barbara N Ruhinda at 1640 EAT on Friday 26 December 2025

The United States has launched airstrikes against Islamic State (IS) militants in north-western Nigeria, targeting camps in Sokoto state near the border with Niger, where the group has been attempting to establish a foothold.

The US military said an “initial assessment” indicated that the strikes resulted in “multiple” fatalities.
President Donald Trump described the Christmas Day operation as “powerful and deadly,” calling the militants “terrorist scum” and accusing them of “viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians.”

Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar told the BBC that the operation was a “joint effort” and stressed that it was not directed at any particular religion.

Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar said the strikes had been planned “for quite some time” and were based on intelligence provided by Nigeria. He did not rule out the possibility of further operations.
Addressing the timing of the attacks, Tuggar said they had “nothing to do with Christmas” and “could have taken place any other day—it is about targeting terrorists who have been killing Nigerians.”

The Nigerian government has long been battling a complex network of jihadist groups, including Boko Haram and IS-linked factions, but the conflict has largely been concentrated in the north-east of the country, hundreds of miles from Sokoto state.

Eyewitness Umar Jabo told BBC News that the strikes occurred late on Thursday near the village of Jabo. “Everyone thought it was a plane. It crashed in fields. Here in Jabo, we live peacefully, and there is no conflict between us and Christians,” he said, denying that any IS fighters had been killed.

The Trump administration has previously accused Nigeria of failing to protect Christians from jihadist attacks and has claimed that a “genocide” is taking place. President Trump has also designated Nigeria a “country of particular concern,” a US State Department classification that allows for sanctions against nations “engaged in severe violations of religious freedom.”

At the time, an adviser to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu told BBC News that militants had targeted people “across faiths” and said any US military action should be carried out jointly with Nigerian forces.

Groups monitoring violence in Nigeria say there is no evidence that Christians are being killed at higher rates than Muslims, in a country roughly evenly divided between the two religions.
In a social media post late on Christmas Day, President Donald Trump confirmed the strikes, saying he would “not allow Radical Islamic Terrorism to prosper.”

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth expressed gratitude for Nigerian cooperation, writing on X: “Grateful for Nigerian government support & cooperation. Merry Christmas!”
The US Department of Defense later released a short video appearing to show a missile being launched from a naval vessel.

On Friday morning, the Nigerian foreign ministry said in a statement that the country “remains engaged in structured security co-operation with international partners, including the United States of America, in addressing the persistent threat of terrorist and violent extremism.”
“This has led to precision hits on terrorist targets in Nigeria by air strikes in the North West,” the statement added.

Jihadist groups such as Boko Haram and IS-linked offshoots have caused widespread devastation in north-eastern Nigeria for more than a decade, killing thousands. Most victims have been Muslims, according to Acled, a group that tracks political violence worldwide.
Nigerian human rights lawyer and conflict analyst Bulama Bukati told BBC World Service that Thursday’s strikes likely targeted a relatively new IS-aligned splinter group, which originated in the Sahel region and has recently relocated fighters to Nigeria.

“The largest IS-linked group in Nigeria—the Islamic State West Africa Province—operates in the north-east,” he said, “while a smaller group, known locally as Lakurawa, has been trying to establish a base in north-western Sokoto state. They began entering Nigeria in 2018 and over the past 18 months to two years have set up camps in Sokoto and Kebbi states. They have been launching attacks and imposing their social laws on local communities during this period.”

According to BBC Monitoring, a pro-IS social media channel has reported almost daily US reconnaissance flights in Sokoto, as well as in Borno state in the north-east, where Nigeria’s largest IS-linked group maintains its stronghold.
Elsewhere in central Nigeria, clashes frequently erupt between mostly Muslim herders and mostly Christian farming communities over access to water and pasture. These conflicts have resulted in deadly cycles of tit-for-tat attacks, claiming thousands of lives on both sides.

The strikes in Nigeria mark the second major US intervention targeting IS in recent weeks. Last week, the US said it carried out a “massive strike” against IS positions in Syria.

US Central Command (Centcom) said fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery “struck more than 70 targets at multiple locations across central Syria,” with aircraft from Jordan also participating. The strikes were launched in retaliation for an ambush in which three Americans—two soldiers and a civilian interpreter—were killed.

BBC

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