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4d ago

U.S.–Nigeria Operation Hits ISIS-Linked Camps in Sokoto as Officials Flag Possible Follow-On Strikes

Abuja says the U.S.-directed Christmas strikes were coordinated, intelligence-led actions against foreign ISIS elements entering from the Sahel.

A general view of destroyed structures in Offa, Nigeria, on December 27, 2025, caused by debris from expended munitions that fell from U.S. strikes on unspecified militants linked to the Islamic State group in Nigeria.
This screen grab from a video posted by the US Department of Defense shows a missile launch from a naval vessel as President Donald Trump says US forces conducted "powerful and deadly" strikes against Islamic State militants in northwestern Nigeria on 25 December 2025, weeks after he warned against any systemic assault on Christians in the country. Picture: HANDOUT / US Department of Defense / AFP
Residents inspect the damage after U.S. forces had launched a strike against Islamic State militants in Nigeria at the request of Nigeria's government, as U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social on December 25, in Offa, Kwara State, Nigeria, December 26, 2025. REUTERS/Abdullahi Dare Akogun
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Overview

  • Nigeria’s information ministry said two ISIS-linked enclaves in the Bauni forest, Tangaza district, were struck with 16 GPS-guided munitions delivered by MQ-9 Reapers from maritime platforms in the Gulf of Guinea.
  • U.S. Africa Command reported multiple militants killed, while Nigerian officials said no civilian casualties were reported, though debris damaged property in parts of Sokoto and neighboring Kwara states.
  • President Bola Tinubu approved the operation, and officials in both countries described continuing counterterrorism cooperation with indications that additional strikes remain possible.
  • An anonymous U.S. defense official said about a dozen Tomahawk missiles were launched from a Navy warship, a detail not publicly confirmed by AFRICOM or Abuja.
  • Nigerian spokespeople said the targets included ISIS elements working with Lakurawa jihadists and local bandit gangs, while President Trump framed the action as a response to killings of Christians and Nigerian officials rejected a religious framing.