• President Donald Trump announced U.S. military strikes against ISIS targets in Nigeria on Christmas night
• The action follows Trump’s November threats to intervene if violence against Christians continued
• A mosque bombing in northeastern Nigeria killed five people on Wednesday, highlighting the complexity of sectarian violence

WASHINGTON, D.C. (TDR) — President Donald Trump announced on Christmas night that the United States launched airstrikes against ISIS targets in northwest Nigeria, delivering on threats he made in November to take military action against groups he accused of targeting Christians in the West African nation.

“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!”

🚨 BREAKING: On Christmas Day, President Trump targets ISIS militants in Nigeria responsible for attacks on Christians. pic.twitter.com/RMbyVCpTPf

— Breaking911 (@Breaking911) December 25, 2025

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Trump wrote on Truth Social late Thursday evening. The president warned that additional strikes would follow if violence against Christians continues, closing his message with “MERRY CHRISTMAS to all, including the dead Terrorists.”

Previous Threats and Controversial Claims

The Christmas Day strikes represent a culmination of escalating rhetoric from the Trump administration that began in November. After watching a Fox News segment about violence in Nigeria, Trump threatened to cut all aid to the country and deploy U.S. forces if Nigerian authorities failed to protect Christians.

“I think Nigeria is a disgrace. The whole thing is a disgrace. They’re killing people by the thousands. It’s a genocide. And I’m really angry about it,”

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Trump said in November, according to NBC News. The administration subsequently redesignated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” for religious freedom violations, a designation that had been removed by President Joe Biden in 2021.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth responded to Trump’s Christmas announcement by confirming the Department of War was prepared for additional operations, stating that “the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria (and elsewhere) must end.”

Nigeria’s Complex Security Crisis

Trump’s characterization of a “Christian genocide” in Nigeria has been disputed by Nigerian officials, security experts, and even some Christian leaders who say the reality on the ground is far more complex. Nigeria’s population of approximately 230 million is split almost evenly between Christians and Muslims, and violence affects both communities.

The Council on Foreign Relations notes that while jihadist groups including Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province have killed Christians, most attacks have occurred in the majority-Muslim northeast, and the majority of victims have been Muslim. A 2024 report from the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom found that extremist violence “affects large numbers of Christians and Muslims in several states across Nigeria.”

According to the National Human Rights Commission, at least 2,266 people were killed by bandits or insurgents during the first half of 2025, surpassing the total number of such deaths in all of 2024. Between January and March 2025 alone, 1,420 Nigerians were killed and 537 were kidnapped in 475 separate security incidents.

Multiple Sources of Violence

The violence plaguing Nigeria stems from several distinct but sometimes overlapping conflicts. In the northeast, Boko Haram and ISWAP continue a 15-year insurgency that has killed thousands and displaced millions. In the northwest, armed bandit groups engage in kidnapping for ransom, cattle rustling, and village raids. In the central “Middle Belt,” clashes between predominantly Muslim herders and predominantly Christian farming communities have resulted in thousands of deaths.

Just this month, more than 50 students were kidnapped from a Catholic school in central Nigeria, with authorities later announcing the rescue of 137 children. Days later, approximately 25 students were abducted from a Muslim school in northwestern Nigeria.

On Wednesday, a suspected suicide bomber struck the Al-Adum mosque in Maiduguri during evening prayers, killing five people and injuring 35 others, according to police. The bombing occurred in Borno State, the epicenter of the Boko Haram insurgency, and targeted Muslim worshippers.

Nigerian Response and International Concerns

Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has rejected Trump’s characterization of the violence as religious persecution, stating that it “does not reflect our national reality.” In a statement following Trump’s November threats, Tinubu emphasized that “Nigeria is a country with constitutional guarantees to protect citizens of all faiths.”

However, Nigeria indicated it would welcome U.S. assistance in fighting armed groups, provided such help respects the country’s territorial integrity. In November, Nigerian National Security Advisor Nuhu Ribadu met with Hegseth in Washington to discuss security cooperation.

Some Nigerian Christian leaders have acknowledged serious problems while questioning the genocide framing. Joseph Hayab, former chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria in Kaduna state, told the Associated Press that while Christians have been killed and every death is tragic, “things have been better than what they were before.”

Security analysts warn that framing Nigeria’s multifaceted security crisis primarily through a religious lens risks oversimplifying the causes of violence and potentially inflaming sectarian tensions. Darren Kerr, dean of the School of Peace Studies at the University of California San Diego, told NBC News that Trump’s approach could “light a match” in an already fragile landscape.

Does military intervention address the root causes of violence in Nigeria, or will it further complicate an already complex security crisis?

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