Targets ISIS militants allegedly killing Christians, Trump says
A video posted by the Pentagon showed at least one projectile launched from a warship. A US defence official said the strike targeted multiple militants at known Islamic State camps.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth on X thanked the Nigerian government for its support and co-operation, and added: “More to come …”
Nigeria is battling multiple militant groups in its troubled northern region, including Islamic State West Africa Province and Boko Haram. Several thousand people have been killed, with millions displaced from their homes since 2009, according to the United Nations.
Nigeria’s government has said armed groups target both Muslims and Christians, and the claim that Christians face persecution does not represent the complex security situation.
That point is echoed by conflict-monitoring groups, who say there is no evidence to suggest that Christians are being killed more than Muslims in Nigeria, whose population is roughly evenly divided between Muslims living primarily in the north and Christians in the south.
In a Christmas message posted on X, Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu called for peace “especially between individuals of differing religious beliefs”.
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He also said: “I stand committed to doing everything within my power to enshrine religious freedom in Nigeria and to protect Christians, Muslims, and all Nigerians from violence.”
Tinubu declared a security emergency last month and ordered the army and police to begin mass recruitment to tackle worsening armed violence. That move followed attacks in multiple states where civilians were killed and kidnapped, and the mass abduction of more than 300 schoolchildren.
Police said on Thursday that a suspected suicide bomber killed at least five people and injured 35 others in the country’s north-east, another region troubled by Islamist insurgents.
The US has taken steps in recent months to punish Nigeria for its perceived failure to protect Christians.
In October, Trump put Nigeria back on a list of countries the US says have violated religious freedom, and this week, Nigeria was added to the US travel ban list of countries facing partial restrictions and entry limitations.
Turkey arrests dozens over suspected attacks
In separate development, Turkish police launched a string of simultaneous raids detaining more than 100 suspected Islamic State members who were allegedly planning attacks on Christmas and New Year’s celebrations, authorities said.
A statement from the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said police were tipped off that the extremist group had called for action – particularly against non-Muslims – during the celebrations.
The office had issued warrants for 137 suspects, of whom 115 were detained. Officers also seized many firearms, cartridges and documents during the raids. It said 124 locations were raided.
The arrests come days after the US launched widespread military strikes in neighbouring Syria to “eliminate” Islamic State fighters and weapons’ sites in retaliation for an ambush blamed on the group that killed two US troops and an American civilian interpreter.
Reuters, AP, Bloomberg
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