US launches attacks on ISIS targets in Nigeria on Christmas Day, Trump says

President Trump said Thursday that the United States launched “powerful and deadly” attacks against Islamic State forces in Nigeria, after spending weeks accusing the West African country’s government of failing to curb persecution of Christians.

“Tonight, under my leadership as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly attack against ISIS terrorist scum in northwestern Nigeria, who have been brutally attacking and killing primarily innocent Christians, at levels not seen in many years, and even centuries!” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social. “I have previously warned these terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughter of Christians, the consequences would be hell, and tonight they did.”

Trump did not provide further details about the attacks, such as how many people were killed, who or what was specifically targeted, or how many attacks were carried out, other than to say they were “numerous perfect attacks.”

The US Africa Command, which oversees US military operations in Africa, said in a statement that its “initial assessment is that multiple ISIS terrorists were killed in ISIS camps.”

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth posted on X: “The president was clear last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria (and elsewhere) must end.” The @DeptofWar is always ready, as ISIS discovered tonight on Christmas. More to come… Grateful for the support and cooperation of the Nigerian government.”

The Department of Defense posted an unclassified 9-second video on its X account that appeared to show a missile being launched from a military vessel.

In its own statement, Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged the attacks and indicated that it had been warned in advance, saying that “Nigerian authorities remain engaged in structured security cooperation with international partners, including the United States of America, to address the persistent threat of terrorism and violent extremism. This has led to precision strikes against terrorist targets in Nigeria through airstrikes in the northwest.”

“Terrorist violence in any form, whether directed against Christians, Muslims or other communities, remains an affront to Nigerian values ​​and international peace and security,” the ministry added.

Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar went further, telling a local television station that his country provided the United States with intelligence on the jihadists before the raids, the French news agency News reported. It quoted him as saying that he spoke on the phone with Secretary of State Marco Rubio “for 19 minutes before the strike and then we spoke again for another five minutes before it continued.”

Asked if there would be more attacks, Tuggar said: “It’s something that is ongoing and we are working with the United States. We are also working with other countries.”

In early November, Trump He said he had given instructions the Pentagon to “prepare for possible action” in Nigeria after it alleged that the Nigerian government was not doing enough to combat persecution of Christians there.

“If we attack, it will be fast, cruel and sweet, just like terrorist thugs attack our beloved Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!” Trump wrote on November 1.

Responding at the time, Hegseth wrote on social media that the War Department, the Trump administration’s preferred term for the Defense Department, was “preparing for action.”

This arrives about a week after the United States carried out a series of strikes against ISIS targets in Syria in response to the killing of two American soldiers and an interpreter.

In November, Trump also said he would designate Nigeria as a “country of particular concern.”

Designating a “country of particular concern” under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 is an executive prerogative that typically follows recommendations from both the congressionally mandated U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom and the State Department.

The State Department usually releases its annual International Religious Freedom Report in the spring, but has not yet done so this year. The report may or may not include designations of “particular concern,” which can be done at any time. And such designations, which authorize US sanctions, do not necessarily impose sanctions.

The Nigerian government has rejected Trump’s claims that it is not doing enough to protect Christians from violence. Analysts have said that while Christians are among the targets, most of the victims of armed groups are Muslims in Muslim-majority northern Nigeria, where most attacks occur. Earlier Thursday, at least five people were killed and dozens more were injured. in an explosion in a mosque in the city of Maiduguri, in northeastern Nigeria.

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu previously said on social media that the characterization of Nigeria as a religiously intolerant country does not reflect the national reality.

“Religious freedom and tolerance have been fundamental principles of our collective identity and always will be,” Tinubu said. “Nigeria opposes and does not encourage religious persecution. Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees to protect citizens of all religions.”

Nigeria was first placed on the list of “countries of particular concern” by the United States in 2020 for what the State Department called “systematic violations of religious freedom.” But the designation does not specifically point out attacks on Christians. The designation was lifted in 2023 in what many saw as a way to improve ties between the countries ahead of a visit by then-Secretary of State Antony Blinken.