U.S. Boosts Arms And Intelligence Support To Nigeria In Fight Against IS-Linked Militants

The United States military is ramping up the provision of equipment and intelligence support to Nigeria as part of a wider effort to collaborate with African forces in combating Islamic State-linked militants, according to Lt. Gen. John Brennan, Deputy Commander of the U.S. Africa Command.

Brennan disclosed this in an interview with the newsmen on the sidelines of a US–Nigeria security meeting held in Abuja last week.

According to Brennan, Washington has adopted a more forceful approach in targeting IS-linked groups across the continent.

“Under the Trump administration, we’ve gotten a lot more aggressive and are working with partners to target, kinetically, the threats, mainly ISIS,” he said.

“From Somalia to Nigeria, the problem set is connected. So we’re trying to take it apart and then provide partners with the information they need.”

He added that the U.S. was focusing on enabling partners by providing equipment and operational capabilities with fewer restrictions.

“It’s been about more enabling partners and then providing them equipment and capabilities with less restrictions so that they can be more successful,” Brennan said.

The inaugural US–Nigeria Joint Working Group meeting came about a month after the United States carried out surprise Christmas Day air strikes on IS-linked targets in northwestern Nigeria.

Brennan said American support going forward would prioritise intelligence sharing to support Nigerian air operations in both the North-West and the North-East, where insurgency by Boko Haram and its splinter group, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), has persisted since 2009.

He described ISWAP as “our most concerning group”.

The renewed military cooperation comes amid diplomatic pressure from Washington over claims of mass killings of Christians in Nigeria.

Abuja and several independent analysts have rejected that framing, arguing that Nigeria’s security crises are complex and affect communities across religious lines.

The issue surfaced at the Joint Working Group meeting, where the U.S. State Department official Allison Hooker urged Nigeria to protect Christians in a speech that did not mention Muslim victims.

Brennan, however, told the newsmen that the U.S. intelligence support would not be limited to protecting Christians.

Analysts have tracked increased the U.S. intelligence flights over Nigeria in recent months but have questioned whether air support alone can weaken militant groups operating in areas plagued by poverty and weak state presence.

The initial U.S. strikes reportedly targeted fighters linked to Islamic State Sahel Province, a group more commonly active in neighbouring Niger.

Brennan warned that the spread of IS-linked groups from the Sahel into coastal West African countries, including Nigeria, was a growing concern.

The impact of the strikes remains unclear, with journalists unable to independently verify militant casualties.

Nigeria’s Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, said last week that the operation was “still a work in progress”.

Brennan also said the U.S. has maintained communication with the militaries of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, despite the countries being ruled by military juntas and having curtailed formal cooperation with Western partners.

“We still collaborate,” he said, adding that intelligence had been shared with some of the countries to target terrorist groups.

“We still talk to our military partners across the Sahelian states, even though it’s not official,” Brennan noted.

Brennan stressed that Washington was not seeking to establish new military bases in West Africa following the closure of its drone base in Agadez, Niger.

“We’re not in the market to create a drone base anywhere,” he said.

“We are much more focused on getting capability to the right place at the right time and then leaving. We don’t seek long-term basing in any of the West African countries.”