The United States President, Donald Trump, has warned that he may authorise additional airstrikes on Nigeria if attacks on Christians persist.
Trump issued the warning during a wide-ranging interview with The New York Times, where he was asked whether the reported Christmas Day airstrikes in Sokoto State, aimed at Islamist militants, were intended as a one-off operation or part of a broader military campaign.
“I’d love to make it a one-time strike,” Trump said. “But if they continue to kill Christians, it will be a many-time strike.”
The remarks followed earlier accusations by the US president that the Nigerian government was failing to protect Christians from jihadist violence. However, the Nigerian government has strongly rejected those claims, insisting that the country’s security challenges cut across religious lines.
In previous responses to similar allegations, Nigerian officials have maintained that Muslims, Christians, and people of no faith have all been victims of attacks by extremist groups, particularly in the country’s north and central regions.
Claims of a targeted genocide against Christians in Nigeria gained traction last year in some right-wing circles in the United States. However, organisations that monitor political violence in Nigeria have consistently reported that the majority of victims of jihadist groups are Muslims, reflecting the complexity of the conflict.
When pressed on this point during the interview, Trump acknowledged that Muslims were also being killed but insisted that Christians bore the brunt of the violence. “I think that Muslims are being killed also in Nigeria,” he said, “but it’s mostly Christians.”
Trump’s comments on Nigeria formed part of a broader interview in which he outlined an expansive and unapologetic view of American power. Speaking from the Oval Office, the US president made clear that he felt unconstrained by international laws or norms when it came to deploying US military force.
Asked whether there were limits to his authority, Trump replied, “Yeah, there is one thing. My own morality. My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.”
The interview also covered Trump’s positions on Venezuela, Greenland, NATO, Ukraine, and Colombia, reinforcing his belief that national strength, rather than international consensus, should determine global affairs.
