by Nij Martin
Nigeria has made it clear that the Christmas Day airstrikes were just the beginning of expanded military cooperation with the United States. Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar told Channels Television that “I believe this is an ongoing thing and we’re working with the U.S. It’s a new phase of an old conflict.” Senior Nigerian officials confirmed that more American attacks are expected, signaling a significant shift in how Africa’s most populous nation is addressing its long-standing security challenges. President Bola Tinubu “gave the go-ahead” for the strikes, according to Tuggar, demonstrating high-level approval for the joint operations.
The Nigerian government has been emphatic about its role in the operation, rejecting any characterization of the strikes as unilateral American action. “It must be made clear that it is a joint operation, and it is not targeting any religion,” Tuggar stated, pushing back against Trump’s framing of the conflict as Christian persecution. The foreign minister stressed that “It’s Nigeria that provided the intelligence” and revealed he was on the phone with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio ahead of the bombardment. Nigeria’s military issued a statement saying its forces, “in conjunction with the United States,” had conducted “precision strike operations,” emphasizing the collaborative nature of the mission.
Nigerian authorities are keen to be seen as cooperating with the US, recognizing that their country faces multiple interlinked security crises that have overwhelmed domestic capacity. Security analyst Confidence MacHarry of SB Morgen Intelligence noted, “Given what we know for now about the attacks, they are largely a signal for something larger. It is very likely that future attacks will do more damage.” Ebenezer Obadare of the Council on Foreign Relations observed, “It seems as if we’re at the moment where the Nigerian authorities have finally realized that they can’t do this thing alone, they need help, and the United States government appears more than willing to give that help.”
The strikes targeted multiple locations including Sokoto State’s far-flung villages, where residents expressed shock at the bombardments. Pentagon officials released video footage showing a nighttime missile launch from a US Navy warship, though they didn’t disclose the vessel’s location. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth included the ominous words “more to come” in his announcement, while Trump reposted his strike announcement without additional comment, letting the message speak for itself. The US Africa Command confirmed that “multiple ISIS terrorists” were killed, though exact casualty figures and damage assessments remain undisclosed.
Public reaction in Nigeria has been divided, reflecting the complexity of the security situation. Emmanuel Udoh, a member of the clergy at Living Faith Church, said: “We are grateful with what the US has done. We are grateful with what the Nigerian government is trying to do.” However, Sulaiman Ibrahim, a Lagos imam, expressed concern: “America has made its way by force in our country, to kill our people.” Some residents in affected areas questioned whether the right targets were hit, with Haruna Kallah of Jabo noting his town “has never been a Lakurawa enclave, and we have never had any attacks in the last two years.”
Nigerian officials have worked to reframe the narrative away from religious persecution to regional security threats. “Simplistic labels don’t solve complex threats,” Tuggar wrote on X. “Terrorism in Nigeria is not a religious conflict; it is a regional security threat.” Security analyst Brant Philip called the Christmas Day timing “a symbolic start to official US operations in Nigeria,” adding that “The operational results of the strikes are not significant, but much is expected soon.” As Trump promised that there would be “many more” dead terrorists if attacks continue, Nigeria has essentially opened its doors to expanded American military involvement, marking a dramatic escalation in how both nations approach the country’s decades-long insurgency problems.