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    US strikes on Nigeria and Syria are ‘consistent’ with policy to combat IS, Republican says

    House armed services committee’s Mike Turner denied that military strikes showed new Trump approach to US forcesUS warns of more Nigeria strikes as Abuja talks of ‘joint ongoing operations’A senior Republican on the US House armed services committee has said that the country’s recent military strikes in Nigeria and Syria are consistent with American foreign policy to combat Islamic extremism that have existed across Donald Trump’s two presidential terms.Mike Turner, an Ohio congressman, said on Sunday that the strikes are a “continuation of our conflict with [the Islamic State]”. Continue reading… More

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    US strikes on IS targets in Nigeria may only fan the flames of insurgent violence | Onyedikachi Madueke

    The public is looking for relief from terrorism and violence. But Donald Trump’s words bolster narratives of foreign ‘crusader’ aggressionThe response of Nigerians to the airstrikes against Islamic State (IS) targets in Sokoto state, north-western Nigeria are complicated. The rationale behind them has been widely opposed, but the strikes themselves have been welcomed.The airstrikes were framed as a response to what have been described as genocidal attacks on Christians in the country. But the Nigerian authorities have consistently rejected this narrative, arguing that armed groups in the country do not discriminate based on religion, and that Christians and Muslims largely coexist peacefully. Ironically, it was Trump’s redesignation of Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” in November that deepened Muslim-Christian tensions. Many northerners, who are predominantly Muslim, blamed southern Nigerians for championing a narrative that ultimately resulted in US sanctions and international stigma.Onyedikachi Madueke is a security analyst at the University of Aberdeen Continue reading… More

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    Trump supporters hail US strikes in Nigeria as ‘amazing Christmas present’

    Some even celebrated ‘mass killing’ and the president’s ‘resolve’ in attacking Islamic State targets The US’s Christmas Day strikes against Islamic State targets in Nigeria have been met with praise by Donald Trump supporters who for months had been agitating for the president to respond forcefully to the killings of Christians in the country.“I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Christmas than by avenging the death of Christians through the justified mass killing of Islamic terrorists,” the far-right political activist Laura Loomer posted on X. “You’ve got to love it! Death to all Islamic terrorists! Thank you.” Continue reading… More

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    Nigeria provided US with intelligence for strikes on Islamist militants, says foreign minister – as it happened

    This blog is now closed. US warns of more Nigeria strikesExplained: Why has Trump ordered strikes in Nigeria?Here are some images of the aftermath of US strikes in Nigeria that have come via the news wires today:Nigerians across Sokoto state told of their shock at Christmas Day strikes by the United States. Continue reading… More

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    Why has Trump ordered strikes in Nigeria and what has it got to do with the persecution of Christians?

    Parts of the US right have for years been amplifying claims that Christians face violence in Nigeria, a notion the US president has helped to encourageAfter spending weeks accusing Nigeria’s government of failing to tackle the persecution of Christians, Donald Trump announced a series of strikes on the west African country on Christmas Day.The strikes, targeting Islamic State militants in the country’s north, mark the latest overseas military intervention from Trump, who campaigned on a promise to extradite the US from decades of “endless wars” during his 2024 run for president. Continue reading… More