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US-backed airstrikes in Nigeria hit two ISIS camps in the Bauni Forest region of Sokoto State, the Nigerian government has confirmed. The damage caused by the strikes, and the number of casualties, is unknown at present.
The strikes, which took place on Thursday, were approved by Nigeria’s president, Bola Tinubu, and were launched from the sea.
The Nigerian government said the operation took place after extensive planning and reconnaissance.
President Trump announced the strikes on Thursday, and said they had taken place at the request of the Nigerian government.
“Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The strike came after Trump began warning, in October, that Christianity faces an “existential threat” in Nigeria from Islamic militants. He threatened military intervention in the West African country over its government’s failure to stop the violence.
On Monday, Reuters reported that the US had been conducting intelligence-gathering flights over large parts of Nigeria since late November.
Although Nigeria has battled Islamic extremism for more than a decade, the presence of ISIS fights in the country is seen as a major escalation of the threat.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth thanked the Nigerian government on X for its support and cooperation and said there was “More to come…”
