Former US President Donald Trump has warned that the United States could carry out more military strikes in Nigeria if violence against Christians persists, citing growing security concerns in the West African country.
Speaking in an interview with The New York Times on Thursday, Trump said he would prefer that recent US strikes be a one-off action, but warned that continued killings would trigger further attacks. “I’d love to make it a one-time strike. But if they continue to kill Christians, it will be a many-time strike,” he said.
The remarks follow Trump’s 2025 decision to designate Nigeria a “country of particular concern,” arguing that Christians there face what he described as an “existential threat.” Nigerian officials have strongly pushed back against that narrative, insisting that extremist violence affects all communities, regardless of faith. A government spokesperson stressed that Muslims, Christians and people of no religion have all been victims, rejecting claims that Christians are being specifically targeted.
When challenged with reports suggesting that most victims of jihadist violence in Nigeria are Muslims, Trump acknowledged Muslim casualties but maintained that Christians are the primary targets. Nigeria’s population of over 230 million is almost evenly split between Christians, largely in the south, and Muslims, predominantly in the north.
The December airstrikes Trump referenced hit camps belonging to Lakurawa, a jihadist group operating in Sokoto State near the Niger border, a predominantly Muslim area. Both US and Nigerian authorities have linked the group to Islamic State-affiliated networks in the Sahel, although IS has not officially claimed ties to Lakurawa. Neither government has released casualty figures from the operation.
Nigeria’s Foreign Minister, Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, described the strikes as a joint operation approved by President Bola Tinubu and involving Nigerian armed forces. He emphasised that the mission was security-driven, not religiously motivated, and dismissed suggestions that it was linked to Christmas, despite Trump referring to the action as a “Christmas present.”
