A senior aide to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Daniel Bwala, has cast doubt on US President Donald Trump’s description of recent American airstrikes in north-west Nigeria, saying Abuja is yet to confirm which terrorist group was actually hit.
Bwala, while speaking with Gareth Barlow, a presenter on Sky News, said while Nigeria shared intelligence with the US ahead of the operation, it remains unclear whether the strikes targeted Islamic State (ISIS) fighters, the Lakurawa faction, or other armed groups operating in the area.
Okay News reports that Bwala was reacting to Trump’s claim that the Christmas Day strikes delivered a “powerful and deadly” blow against ISIS militants allegedly killing Christians. According to Bwala, that framing is “sketchy” and premature, stressing that Nigerian authorities are still assessing the exact identity of those neutralised during the operation.
The comments appear to contrast with the Federal Government’s official position announced on Friday, December 26, 2025, when the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said Nigeria carried out “successful precision strikes on foreign ISIS elements” in the Bauni forest area of Tangaza Local Government Area, Sokoto State.
The government maintained the strikes were intelligence-driven, approved by President Tinubu, and executed with the support of the Armed Forces of Nigeria and strategic partners, with no civilian casualties recorded.
