President Donald Trump has announced that the United States has carried out what he described as a “powerful and deadly strike” against Islamic State (IS) militants in north-western Nigeria, in an operation conducted jointly with Nigerian security forces.
In a post on his Truth Social platform late on Thursday, Mr Trump said the US military had “executed numerous perfect strikes” against the militant group, accusing IS of targeting and killing civilians. He said the action demonstrated Washington’s resolve to prevent “radical Islamic terrorism” from gaining ground.
The US Africa Command (Africom) later confirmed that the air strikes took place in Nigeria’s Sokoto State and were carried out in coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, told the BBC that the operation was a joint, intelligence-led mission against terrorists and was “not based on religion”. He said the strike had been planned for some time using intelligence provided by Nigerian agencies.
In a statement issued on Friday, Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the country remained engaged in structured security cooperation with international partners, including the United States, to counter terrorism and violent extremism.
“This collaboration has resulted in precision air strikes against terrorist targets in the North-West,” the ministry said.
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth also acknowledged Nigeria’s role, thanking the Nigerian government for its cooperation. The US Department of Defense later released a video appearing to show a missile launch from a military vessel.
The development is being closely watched across West Africa, where countries continue to face the spillover effects of terrorism and violent extremism. Ghana, which has so far avoided large-scale attacks, has strengthened border security and intelligence cooperation in response to growing instability in parts of the Sahel and neighbouring states.
In recent months, claims circulating in some political circles in the United States have suggested that Christians are being specifically targeted for killings in Nigeria. However, organisations that monitor political violence say there is no evidence that Christians are being killed at higher rates than Muslims in the country, which is almost evenly divided between the two religions.
A senior adviser to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, Daniel Bwala, said Nigeria welcomed international support in tackling jihadist groups but stressed that the country remained sovereign. He added that extremist groups had killed Nigerians of all faiths, without distinction.
President Tinubu has repeatedly emphasised Nigeria’s tradition of religious tolerance, noting that insecurity affects citizens across regions and faiths.
Mr Trump has previously declared Nigeria a “country of particular concern” over religious freedom, a designation that can lead to US sanctions. Nigerian authorities have rejected allegations of religious persecution and have pledged continued cooperation with international partners to protect all citizens.
Nigeria has battled Islamist insurgency for more than a decade, particularly in the north-east, where Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province have killed thousands. Conflict-monitoring group ACLED reports that the majority of victims have been Muslims.
Beyond the insurgency, Nigeria’s central belt has also experienced recurrent violence between herders and farming communities over land and water, resulting in deadly cycles of reprisal attacks. Human rights groups say atrocities have been committed on all sides.
The reported strike in Nigeria follows a series of US military actions against Islamic State targets elsewhere, including a recent operation in Syria, underscoring Washington’s continued focus on counter-terrorism operations across multiple regions.
