Nigeria supplied the United States with intelligence on jihadists prior to the strikes that occurred in the country on Christmas Day, according to the Nigerian foreign ministry.
On Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced that the military had conducted strikes against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria, following weeks of denouncing the group for targeting Christians.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, the president stated: “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!”
“I have previously warned these Terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was. The Department of War executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing.”
Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar informed broadcaster ChannelsTV that he had spoken with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, confirming that Nigeria “provided” the intelligence.
“We spoke twice. We spoke for 19 minutes before the strike and then we spoke again for another five minutes before it went on,” Tuggar said. He added that they spoke “extensively” and that President Bola Tinubu gave “the go-ahead” to launch the strikes.
Tuggar did not rule out further strikes, describing them as an “ongoing process” that would also involve other countries.
In an interview with the BBC, Tuggar insisted that the strikes had “nothing to do with a particular religion.” He stated that the operation did not have “anything to do with Christmas; it could be any other day—it is to do with attacking terrorists who have been killing Nigerians.”
Trump has previously indicated that he would initiate a “guns-a-blazing” US military intervention in Nigeria, asserting that the country’s government has been inadequate in its efforts to prevent attacks on Christians by Islamist groups.
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