Abuja, Dec 26 (IANS) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nigeria on Friday confirmed that Nigerian authorities, in structured security cooperation with international partners, including the United States, carried out airstrikes on terrorist targets in the north-west part of the African country.
The statement came after US President Donald Trump said the American forces had carried out a military strike against ISIS targets in northwest Nigeria.
According to the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the operation resulted in precision air strikes against the terrorist targets as part of efforts to address the persistent threat of terrorism and violent extremism in Nigeria.
“In line with established international practice and bilateral understandings, this cooperation includes the exchange of intelligence, strategic coordination, and other forms of support consistent with international law, mutual respect for sovereignty, and shared commitments to regional and global security,” read an official statement issued by the Foreign Ministry of Nigeria.
Nigeria reiterated that all counter-terrorism efforts are guided by the “primacy of protecting civilian lives, safeguarding national unity, and upholding the rights and dignity of all citizens, irrespective of faith or ethnicity”.
The statement added that terrorist violence in any form, whether directed at Christians, Muslims, or other communities, remains an affront to Nigeria’s values and to international peace and security.
“The Federal Government continues to work closely with its partners through established diplomatic and security channels to weaken terrorist networks, disrupt their financing and logistics, and prevent cross-border threats, while strengthening Nigeria’s own security institutions and intelligence capabilities,” it mentioned.
The Nigerian Foreign Ministry affirmed that it would continue to engage relevant partners and keep the public informed through appropriate official channels.
Describing the operation as a direct response to escalating attacks on Nigerian civilians, President Trump, in a post on his social media platform Truth Social late Thursday, said, “Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria.”
He said the group had been “targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!”
Trump said he had issued warnings in advance. “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,” he said.
According to Trump, US forces carried out multiple operations during the mission. “The Department of War executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing,” he said, without providing operational details. “Under my leadership, our Country will not allow Radical Islamic Terrorism to prosper,” he said.
–IANS
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