ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — A U.S. strike on ISIS militants in northwest Nigeria has intensified a national debate over sovereignty, foreign intervention, and Nigeria’s evolving role as a regional military power, drawing sharply divergent reactions from clerics, analysts, and political figures.
President Donald Trump said the strike targeted ISIS fighters responsible for killing Christians. U.S. Africa Command confirmed the operation was conducted at Nigeria’s request. But the political fallout inside Nigeria has been immediate and unusually polarized.
Shortly after the announcement, Nigerian users reported that access to the AFRICOM website and the CNN page carrying the initial report was temporarily blocked. Authorities have not commented, leaving unclear whether the disruption was intentional or technical. The blackout fueled speculation among critics who already view foreign military involvement as politically sensitive.
Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, one of Nigeria’s most influential clerics, condemned the strike as “a profound disrespect to our sovereignty,” urging President Bola Tinubu to suspend military cooperation with Washington. “Nigeria cannot outsource its security to foreign powers,” he said. “This sets a dangerous precedent.”
But others welcomed the operation, arguing that Nigeria’s security crisis requires decisive action from both domestic and international partners.
Attorney Asukwo Mendie Archibong, a U.S.-based lawyer and former presidential candidate, praised the strike and urged Abuja to intensify its own counterterrorism efforts. “The terrorists targeting Nigerians must be confronted without hesitation,” Archibong said. “Christians and all Nigerians deserve full protection from their government. This is not the time for political hesitation — it is a time for action.”
Security analysts say the split reflects deeper regional anxieties.
“Foreign strikes on Nigerian soil, even when invited, hit a raw nerve,” said Kaduna‑based political analyst Amina Yusuf. “There is a long history of suspicion toward Western military involvement, especially in the North.”
Others argue the backlash is more political than principled.
“Some of the loudest critics would not object if the same strike were carried out by a non‑Western partner,” said Abuja security researcher Kabiru Adedeji. “This is less about sovereignty and more about who is holding the trigger.”
The debate intensified after Nigeria deployed fighter jets and ground forces into Benin Republic earlier this month to help foil a coup attempt, striking targets in Cotonou at the request of Beninese authorities. The operation, conducted under ECOWAS protocols, cast Nigeria as a regional security guarantor — even as it criticized foreign strikes on its own soil.
“That contradiction is impossible to ignore,” said Lagos‑based international relations scholar Dr. Ifeanyi Okoye. “Nigeria is asserting sovereignty at home while projecting power abroad. It wants to be both a protected state and a regional hegemon.”
The controversy has also revived older political wounds. Former President Muhammadu Buhari’s 2013 remark — “an attack on Boko Haram is an attack on the North” — resurfaced across social media, shaping perceptions of the U.S. strike among northern communities.
Despite the uproar, some analysts say cooperation with Washington is strategically necessary.
“Nigeria’s military is overstretched,” said retired Air Commodore John Agbaje. “If the U.S. can deliver precision strikes on ISIS cells that Nigeria struggles to reach, that’s a practical partnership, not a surrender of sovereignty.”
So far, no militant group has issued a statement acknowledging the strike, and no calls for retaliation have been reported. International reaction has been muted, with no immediate comments from ECOWAS, the African Union, or Western governments.
For now, the episode underscores the delicate balance Nigeria must navigate as it deepens security ties with the United States while asserting itself as a regional power.
“West Africa is entering a new era,” said analyst Amina Yusuf. “Nigeria is trying to lead, the U.S. is trying to stabilize, and the public is trying to understand where sovereignty begins and ends.”
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- A deep‑dive feature on the sovereignty debate
- A timeline of reactions and events
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