United States Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the Department of War is preparing for possible military action in Nigeria following President Donald Trump’s directive over alleged killings of Christians in the country.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, Hegseth confirmed that preparations were underway, responding directly to Trump’s earlier warning of potential U.S. intervention.
“Yes sir. The killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria and anywhere must end immediately,” Hegseth wrote. “The Department of War is preparing for action. Either the Nigerian Government protects Christians, or we will kill the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.”
His statement came shortly after Trump declared that the U.S. could “go into” Nigeria if the government failed to stop the attacks.
“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria,” Trump posted. “We may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.”
Trump said he had instructed the Department of War “to prepare for possible action,” warning that any U.S. offensive would be “fast, vicious, and sweet.”
On Friday, Trump announced Nigeria’s addition to the U.S. Department of State’s list of Countries of Particular Concern (CPC), citing alleged tolerance of religious persecution.
He blamed radical Islamists for what he described as the “mass slaughter” of Christians in Nigeria.
Reacting, President Bola Tinubu rejected the designation and dismissed the allegations of systematic persecution, stressing that Nigeria remains a democratic nation “anchored on constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion and belief.”
The Nigerian government has yet to issue an official response to the latest U.S. military threat.
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