Overview
- The New York Times, citing U.S. defense sources, reports AFRICOM drew up three escalatory options: advisory support to Nigerian forces, U.S. drone strikes in the north, and deploying a carrier strike group to the Gulf of Guinea.
- Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth said the department is preparing for potential actions following the president’s directive, with decisions still developing.
- The drone-strike option is complicated by the U.S. withdrawal from bases in Niger, leaving Djibouti or sites in southern Europe as launch points.
- Deploying a carrier group is viewed as least likely due to limited carrier availability and Nigeria’s lower priority for U.S. national security, with the USS Gerald R. Ford redirected to the Caribbean.
- No formal request for intervention has come from Abuja, President Bola Tinubu rejected Washington’s characterization of Nigeria, and a State Department official told Newsweek the U.S. stands ready to work with Nigeria while urging stronger protection for vulnerable Christians.