The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has commended United States President Donald John Trump for authorising airstrikes against Islamic State (ISIS) elements operating in parts of Nigeria, describing the action as a decisive response to years of unchecked terrorist violence that has devastated communities across the country.

The commendation followed recent confirmation by U.S. authorities that American forces carried out targeted air operations against ISIS-linked fighters in north-west Nigeria after President Trump reiterated his readiness to confront terrorist groups threatening global security. The strikes reportedly targeted camps and logistics hubs linked to the Islamic State’s West Africa and Sahel networks, which have expanded their footprint in Nigeria’s northern region.

HURIWA said the action demonstrated political will and military clarity that have long been lacking in the global response to terrorism in Nigeria, noting that extremist groups including Boko Haram, ISWAP and armed Fulani terror militias have operated with deadly impunity for over a decade.

The rights group recalled that terrorist violence in Nigeria has claimed **well over 60,000 lives**, with countless others displaced, abducted or maimed. It cited mass killings of villagers, bombings of mosques and churches, attacks on schools, abductions of students, executions of aid workers, destruction of farmlands and the systematic targeting of security personnel as hallmarks of the terror campaign.

According to HURIWA, Boko Haram and its affiliates have turned entire communities into graveyards, emptied towns across the North-East and North-West, and created one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, while armed Fulani extremist groups have continued coordinated attacks on farming communities in the Middle Belt and southern Kaduna, often with little resistance.

The organisation urged the United States and its allies to **sustain the tempo of military pressure** on ISIS, Boko Haram and related terror factions, stressing that the groups must be relentlessly degraded and dismantled until they lose the capacity to inflict harm. It, however, cautioned that counter-terrorism operations must be conducted with precision to avoid civilian casualties and protect innocent populations already traumatised by years of violence.

HURIWA also called on the Nigerian government to move beyond rhetoric by adopting far-reaching and decisive security measures, including stronger intelligence coordination, sustained military offensives, prosecution of terror financiers and collaborators, and improved protection for vulnerable communities.

In a related development, HURIWA condemned Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi over his repeated public interventions perceived as sympathetic to armed groups and hostile to robust military action against terrorists. The association described such positions as dangerous at a time Nigeria is battling for survival against violent extremism.

The group demanded that the Department of State Services (DSS) immediately investigate Sheikh Gumi’s statements and activities, insisting that no individual should be allowed to undermine national security or offer moral cover to groups responsible for mass killings and destabilisation of the country.

HURIWA maintained that Nigeria’s fight against terrorism requires unity, clarity of purpose and zero tolerance for extremism or its enablers, warning that continued hesitation would only embolden violent groups and prolong the suffering of civilians.

The association reiterated that while international military support is welcome, Nigeria must demonstrate unwavering resolve to decisively defeat terrorism in all its forms and restore safety, justice and stability across the federation.

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