Nigeria signals more strikes likely as Trump hails US air attack as 'Christmas present' to Daesh
Abuja confirms joint operation with US after Christmas Day air strikes.
Nigeria has signalled that further military strikes against Daesh-linked terror groups are likely following a Christmas Day air attack carried out jointly with the United States in the country’s north-west.
Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar said the operation was ongoing and stressed that Nigeria had provided intelligence for the strikes, which he described as a joint effort with Washington.
"It is an ongoing thing," Tuggar told Channels TV when asked whether more strikes were expected, adding that "it must be made clear that it is a joint operation, and it is not targeting any religion."
The comments came after US President Donald Trump publicly described the air strikes as a "Christmas present" to Daesh, saying the attack was deliberately timed for symbolic impact.
Trump hails strikes
Trump described US air strikes against Daesh targets in Nigeria as a "Christmas present" to the terror group, saying the operation was deliberately timed for Christmas Day.
Speaking on WABC radio, Trump said he had warned Nigerian authorities about the consequences of continued violence, claiming that "tens of thousands of Christians" were being killed in the country.
"I said yesterday, 'Hit them on Christmas Day. It will be a Christmas present'," Trump said.
He said US forces struck Daesh targets "hard" at several locations, describing the group as "terrible" and "butchers."
"They really got hit hard yesterday," he said.
"They got a very bad Christmas present."
Wider military operations
In a separate interview with Politico, Trump said the attack had originally been planned for Wednesday but was postponed to Christmas Day to give it what he described as "symbolic" meaning.
"They didn’t think that was coming," he said.
"Every camp got decimated."
Trump announced on his Truth Social platform that the United States carried out strikes against Daesh targets in north-west Nigeria on Thursday.
US Africa Command said the strikes were launched "at the request of Nigerian authorities" in Sokoto State and resulted in the killing of multiple Daesh fighters, according to a statement posted on X.
Nigeria confirmed early Friday that it continues to cooperate with the United States on security matters to counter terrorism and violent extremism.