United States President Donald Trump has warned that American forces will launch further military strikes in Nigeria if Islamic State (ISIS) militants continue attacks against Christians in the country.
Trump said he personally authorised recent airstrikes against ISIS-linked fighters in North-West Nigeria, describing the operation as “powerful and deadly”. He made the comments on Thursday via his Truth Social account, where he said US forces carried out “numerous perfect strikes” on ISIS elements.
“At my direction as Commander-in-Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS terrorist scum in Northwest Nigeria,” Trump wrote, adding that the militants had been “viciously killing… innocent Christians”.
He said the action followed earlier warnings to the group and stressed that Washington would not tolerate further violence.
He also praised the precision of the operation, saying the US “will not allow radical Islamic terrorism to prosper”.
In a Christmas message reinforcing the warning, Trump said more military action would follow if the killings persisted.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the strikes sent a strong signal to ISIS and thanked the Nigerian Government for its cooperation.
US Africa Command (AFRICOM) confirmed that strikes were conducted on 25 December in Sokoto State “at the direction of the President of the United States and the Secretary of War, and in coordination with Nigerian authorities”, adding that several ISIS fighters were killed.
The development marks a significant escalation of US military action against ISIS-linked groups operating in Nigeria, amid growing security cooperation between both countries.
