PRESIDENT Donald Trump has said the United States carried out a “powerful and deadly strike” against ISIS militants operating in Nigeria.

In a statement published Thursday on his Truth Social platform, Trump said the strike was launched “at my direction as Commander in Chief,” accusing ISIS-linked fighters in Nigeria of “viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians.”

He claimed that the “Department of War executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing.”

He didn’t not mention the nature of the strike.

Shortly after Trump statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Nigeria confirmed that the country is actively cooperating with international partners, including the United States, in combating terrorism and violent extremism.

In the statement shared on the ministry’s handle on X, noted that the collaboration has recently resulted in precision air strikes targeting terrorist groups in the North West of 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,” the statement read.

Nigeria has been at the centre of debate over claims that Christians are being systematically targeted, particularly in the Middle Belt and northern regions. Islamist groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) have carried out mass killings, kidnappings, and attacks on civilians of different faiths, alongside widespread banditry and communal violence.

Christian advocacy organisations and some U.S. lawmakers have described the violence as a “genocide” against Christians. Nigerian authorities strongly reject this characterisation, arguing that the conflict is driven by a complex mix of terrorism, criminality, land disputes and poverty rather than an organised campaign of religious extermination.

In October, Trump announced on Truth Social that he had designated Nigeria a “Country of Particular Concern,” citing what he described as “an existential threat to Christianity.”

“Christianity is facing an existential threat in Nigeria. Thousands of Christians are being killed. Radical Islamists are responsible for this mass slaughter. I am hereby making Nigeria a ‘Country of Particular Concern’ — but that is the least of it,” Trump wrote.

Nigeria’s federal government rejected the designation. In a statement by the spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, the government said Trump’s claims did not accurately reflect the situation in the country.

“The Federal Government of Nigeria notes the recent remarks by U.S. President Donald Trump alleging large-scale killings of Christians in Nigeria and calling for the country’s designation as a ‘Country of Particular Concern,’” the statement said.

“These claims do not reflect the situation on the ground. Nigerians of all faiths have long lived, worked, and worshipped together peacefully.”

Nigeria has battled Boko Haram and its splinter groups in the northeast for more than a decade. In recent years, the North Central region has seen a rise in armed attacks, with churches and schools increasingly targeted, leading to mass abductions.

Trump’s statement in full

Donald J. Trump
@realDonaldTrump

Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries! 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. The Department of War executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing. Under my leadership, our Country will not allow Radical Islamic Terrorism to prosper. May God Bless our Military, and MERRY CHRISTMAS to all, including the dead Terrorists, of which there will be many more if their slaughter of Christians continues.

DONALD J. TRUMP
PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA