Days after the U.S. “Christmas Day” strikes on ISIS targets in Sokoto, Nigeria, officials in Abuja have stated that subsequent counter‑terrorism operations would be led by the Nigerian Air Force, with the US providing reconnaissance and intelligence support.
A Nigerian official told the AFP news agency on January 6 that the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) will conduct its counter-terrorism operations itself, with US contributions focused on ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance) rather than on direct strikes.
The move appears to be aimed at distancing itself from sustained US intervention in the African country amid concerns about violations of Nigerian sovereignty.
The “Christmas Day” operation, announced by US President Donald Trump on December 26, 2025, on Truth Social, was undertaken by the US Africa Command in coordination with Nigerian authorities.
Trump said the operation was a success, emphasising that it was in direct response to the targeting and killing of innocent Christians in the region by “ISIS Terrorist Scum,” as reported by the EurAsian Times at the time.
Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar stated that the attacks had “nothing to do with a particular religion.” Meanwhile, the Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had stated, rather emphatically, that people were affected by security issues “irrespective of religions and regions.”
When Trump ordered the Pentagon in November 2025 to prepare for a potential military action in Nigeria to stop ‘Christian persecution’, Abuja expressed readiness to work with Washington but steered clear of endorsing the US narrative about religious persecution.
Notably, the Islamic State has links to at least two different militant groups operating in Nigeria. This includes the Islamic State of West Africa, an offshoot of Boko Haram that primarily operates in the northeast, and the lesser-known Islamic State’s Shahel Province (ISSP), known locally as Lakurawa, with a significant presence in the northwest
The jihadist organisations like Boko Haram and the Islamic State of West Africa have wreaked havoc in northeastern Nigeria for more than ten years, killing thousands of people, the majority of whom were Muslims, as noted by ACLED (Armed Conflict Location and Event Data), a group that tracks political violence.
Since Trump announced successful strikes, questions have been raised about why Nigeria coordinated with the US despite disputing the Christian genocide. Experts surmise that the Nigerian government likely calculated that conditional cooperation was preferable to the risk of unilateral US action.
Separately, the US intervention has also raised concerns about a potential future violation of the African country’s national sovereignty.
Additionally, the selection of targets has also drawn criticism in the country. Two significant Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist enclaves in the Bauni forest in the Tangaza Local Authority Area of Sokoto state were attacked, according to the authorities. However, some questioned the decision to target northwest Sokoto, where armed criminal groups, referred to as “bandits,” pose a greater threat than Islamists, who may not have been impacted.
Going forward, the Nigerian government is unlikely to halt its counter-terrorism operations, but it will do so with Nigerian Air Force (NAF) aircraft, using US intelligence.
NAF To Lead Air Strikes
The US used guided missiles launched from large Reaper drones kept on “maritime platforms domiciled in the Gulf of Guinea.”
“A total of 16 GPS-guided precision munitions were deployed using MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aerial platforms, successfully neutralising the targeted ISIS elements attempting to penetrate Nigeria from the Sahel corridor,” Information Minister Mohammed Idris said in a statement giving out details of the operation, using an acronym for the Islamic State.
“The strikes were launched from maritime platforms domiciled in the Gulf of Guinea, after extensive intelligence gathering, operational planning, and reconnaissance,” Idris added.
The main weapons were Tomahawk sea-launched, long-range, precision-guided cruise missiles. More than a dozen missiles were fired, according to reports, but several of them were found unexploded in the aftermath.
These strikes did not involve any ground forces or manned aircraft. Instead, it was a stand-off naval missile strike, which is different from other previous US counterterrorism operations in Africa that mainly focus on heavy bombing runs.
The US can deliver long‑range, stand‑off precision strikes from drones and naval platforms, something the Nigerian Air Force cannot currently replicate. However, the unidentified source, who spoke to AFP recently, said the nation’s fighter jets would use information from US reconnaissance missions to support their own airstrikes.
While Nigeria often initiates or provides ground intelligence, the US provides advanced capabilities such as satellite imagery, signals intelligence, and aerial surveillance/reconnaissance (ISR) flights conducted using drones—for instance, the MQ-9 Reaper is extensively used for monitoring. This gathered intelligence is then fused through joint channels, which helps in identifying militant locations, movements, and camps.
For sustained campaigns against terrorists and bandits, Nigeria’s mix of A‑29 Super Tucanos, Chinese-origin JF‑17 Thunders, Alpha jets, and incoming M‑346FAs may, in fact, be better suited to repeated, localized sorties over familiar terrain.
Of these, the JF-17, jointly developed by China and Pakistan, is considered the most advanced fighter in NAF’s inventory, but its role has increasingly come under scrutiny despite growing popularity.
Nigeria acquired three JF-17 Thunder Block II multi-role fighter jets, with formal induction in May 2021.
However, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Isiaka Oladayo Amao, publicly confirmed in January 2023 that the JF-17s had been used in anti-terrorism and anti-insurgency operations.
Nigeria’s JF-17s are Block II models featuring cutting-edge avionics, including a KLJ-7 radar, electronic warfare capabilities, and compatibility with precision-guided munitions.
They can carry a combination of air-to-air missiles, air-to-ground bombs, and anti-ship missiles, and they have electro-optical targeting pods (such as the Turkish ASELPOD) for precision strikes.
The aircraft is designed for various roles, including interception, ground attack, anti-ship operations, and aerial reconnaissance, making it a crucial asset in the NAF.
However, earlier reports suggested that Nigeria was unhappy with the aircraft due to reliability, weapons-load, and precision issues, which have limited its role in day‑to‑day counter‑terrorism operations.
According to some sources, the J-17’s “poor accuracy and low weapon-carrying capacity” forced Nigeria to abandon plans to purchase additional JF-17s. Meanwhile, others have attributed the JF-17’s limited role in counter-terrorism operations to structural flaws and engine problems.
In contrast, the A‑29 Super Tucano is often found leading the counter-terrorism strikes due to long loiter time, fuel efficiency, and ability to operate from austere airstrips.
“It offers excellent fuel efficiency and significantly longer loiter time compared to supersonic fighters, making it far better suited for prolonged operations. The A-29 can loiter over a target for hours, observing, tracking, and waiting for the right moment to strike. In contrast, fighter jets are built for speed, making brief, high-speed passes rather than sustained presence over the battlefield. The A-29 can also operate from short and austere runways. This gives them more basing options closer to the fight,” explained an account on X that goes by the name Defense News Nigeria.
The tip of the spear in Nigeria’s air campaign against terror — the A-29 Super Tucano. pic.twitter.com/W82t0p6UdV
— Defense News Nigeria (@DefenseNigeria) September 17, 2025
These concerns are widely cited as one factor behind Nigeria’s decision to buy 24 M‑346FA light fighter/attack aircraft from Italy.
Nonetheless, the NAF fields several categories of drones that can be, and in some cases already are, used for counter‑terrorism strikes. This includes the Chinese CH‑3 and CH‑4–type UCAVs, which are medium‑altitude drones capable of carrying guided missiles and bombs, making them ideal for armed strikes. Additionally, Nigeria also has the Wing Loong II MALE‑class UAVs that can be used for ISR over insurgent areas.
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