U.S. President Donald Trump said that the United States has launched “powerful and lethal” strikes against forces of the terrorist organization Islamic State in Nigeria, after weeks of accusing the West African country’s government of failing to curb the persecution of Christians.
Donald Trump also said that “numerous perfect strikes” were carried out.
“Tonight, by my order as Commander-in-Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against the terrorist scum of the Islamic State in northwestern Nigeria, which persecutes and brutally kills, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for years, and even centuries,” Trump said on the Truth Social platform.
He added that he had “previously warned these terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughter of Christians, all hell would break loose,” stating that this “happened tonight.”
U.S. Africa Command, which oversees American military operations on the continent, said that its “initial assessment is that multiple Islamic State terrorists were killed in their camps” in Nigeria, CBS reports.
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on the X platform that the American president “was clear last month: the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria (and elsewhere) must end.” He added that the Islamic State learned this “tonight — on Christmas.”
“More information will be released… I am grateful to the Nigerian government for its support and cooperation,” Hegseth said.
Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed the strikes in a statement and indicated that it had received advance notice, stating that “Nigerian authorities remain engaged in structured security cooperation with international partners, including the United States, in addressing the persistent threat of terrorism and violent extremism.”
“This has led to precise strikes on terrorist targets in Nigeria through air operations in the northwest. 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 Nigerian Foreign Ministry said.
In early November, Trump said he had instructed the Pentagon to “prepare for possible action” in Nigeria, stating that the Nigerian government was not doing enough to combat the persecution of Christians in the country.
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Source: RTS, Foto: REUTERS