By Otis Grotewohl
January 2, 2026
Trump directed U.S. forces to bomb Nigeria and Somalia on Dec. 25, 2025, recognized by many as Christmas day. Grossly calling the bombs a “Christmas gift,” the Trump administration specifically chose Christmas as the day to attack these two majority Muslim African countries as a clear message symbolizing white supremacy and Western hegemony.
Tens of thousands of Somalis demonstrate against Israel’s recognition of secessionist “Somaliland,” Mogadishu, Somalia, Dec. 30, 2025.
The U.S. launched Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles on the Sokoto village of Jabo, located in the northwestern region of Nigeria. The Trump administration claims the missiles were targeting members of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Washington officials claim the bombing campaign killed specific targets. Corporate media reports, however, contradict the stories coming out of the White House and claim a death count has not been confirmed.
Headlines from the bourgeois press indicate there was panic and mass confusion among Nigerians, following the bombing raids. For instance, CNN interviewed several bombing survivors, including Suleiman Kagara, a resident in a farming community in Tambuwal district of Sokoto. “We couldn’t sleep last night, and we’ve never seen anything like this before.” Kagara told reporters. (CNN, Dec. 26).
Bashar Isah Jabo, a lawmaker representing Tambuwal in the state parliament, told Western journalists that there is “no known history of ISIS operating in the area.” (CNN, Dec. 26). Bashar Isah Jabo also highlighted the fact that U.S. missiles hit a field “approximately 500 meters” from a Primary Health Center in Jabo.
Real reason for U.S. bombing of Nigeria
For months, the Trump administration has been riling up its white supremacist, Christian nationalist base by espousing talking points about an alleged “genocide” against the Christian community of Nigeria.
U.S. Senator Ted Cruz repeated Trump’s lies on X in October by falsely claiming that “since 2009, over 50,000 Christians in Nigeria have been massacred and over 18,000 churches burned,” without providing any sources. (BBC, Dec. 27). Islamophobic “comedian” Bill Maher exaggerated even higher figures one month prior, claiming “over 100,000 Christians” had been killed in the West African country since 2009. The unfounded claims have been repeated throughout social media.
Neither Trump, Cruz nor Maher expressed empathy for the Muslim population of Nigeria who are reported to have also experienced violence from the same reactionary forces alleged to have hurt Christians. While the Trump administration claims the bombing campaign against Nigeria was conducted to “protect Christians,” the White House has not offered U.S. refuge for Christian Nigerians, virtually all of whom are Black, the way the Trump administration did for white “Christian” Afrikaners of South Africa.
It is also a double standard for Trump to pretend to care about the Christian population of Nigeria while welcoming current Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa to the White House on Nov. 11. There are credible reports about violent attacks against Christians in Syria, as well as the Alawite population, following the violent overthrow of former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Nigeria is the largest producer of crude oil in Africa. Bashir Ojulari,the CEO of Nigerian National Petroleum Company, has publicly boasted that Nigeria produced nearly 1.7 million barrels of crude oil a day and is expected to increase the amount to 1.8 million barrels in 2026. (Reuters, Dec. 29). U.S. imperialism has historically proven itself willing to exaggerate stories to invade and steal resources from other countries. Claiming to care about “human rights violations” inside an oil-rich country is nothing new for U.S. war hawks.
Importance of global solidarity
The bombing of Nigeria was concurrent with a four-day bombing operation against Somalia, Dec. 22–25. The U.S. has been carrying out attacks on Somalia since 2007, shortly after the CIA-backed Ethiopian invasion in 2006.
U.S. attacks on Somalia started with the George W. Bush administration and continued under the following administrations. The second Trump regime escalated attacks more than the previous presidencies, including the first Trump term. Trump’s administration has already bombed Somalia at least 120 times within a year of his second term, nearly surpassing the total of 219 strikes during his entire first term.(taskandpurpose.com, Dec. 28)
The U.S. is increasing its war against the working class at home and abroad as the capitalist economic crisis deepens. The racist Trump administration has specifically set its sights on the Global South. The best way to confront the imperialist war machine is through collective unity and global solidarity.
Hands off Africa!
