The Special Adviser on Public Communications and Media to Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Daniel Bwala, has described the airstrikes launched by the United States on ISIS-linked terrorists in Sokoto as sketchy.

Bwala, while speaking with Sky News, noted that the US has jurisdictional power over operations against ISIS and its affiliates around the world, but the country may not have specific authorization by its Congress to fight terrorist organizations that are designated as such in Nigeria.

“I’m sure that the American government has jurisdictional power over operations against ISIS and their ancillaries around the world. They may not have specific authorization by Congress to fight terrorist organizations that are designated as such in Nigeria,” said Bwala.

ISIS, also known as Islamic State or ISIL, is a violent extremist organisation that follows a jihadist ideology and has carried out attacks in several parts of the world, including Africa. The terrorist organisation’s goal is to establish a so-called Islamic caliphate governed by its extreme interpretation of Islamic law.

Nigeria has been experiencing a violent spate of insecurity and terrorism since 2009. In the first few years of the wave of insecurity, Boko Haram was known to coordinate most of the attacks. In recent years, however, many terrorist organisations have sprung up, including the likes of Ansaru, ISWAP, Lakurawa, among others, some of whom have been linked to ISIS.

These terrorist organisations coordinate attacks on Christian communities and churches. In October, there were claims suggesting an ongoing genocide of Christians in Nigeria. The United States thereafter redesignated Nigeria as a country of particular concern after President Donald Trump expressed concern that Christianity faces an existential threat in the West African nation, with a lot of Christians being killed.

Trump threatened military intervention in Nigeria if the West African country failed to address the Christian genocide. On Thursday, the US launched airstrikes in Nigeria tageting ISIS-linked terrorists. At press time, there have been no figure on the number of assailants killed or arrested during the strike

Speaking on the development, Bwala noted that there will be report about exact targets in coming days.

“Both Boko Haram have been designated as a terrorist organisation. Therefore, we consider them all as part of the act of terrorism against the state. So I believe that’s the understanding that the American government had. But this is sketchy, right? In coming days or hours, we’re going to have more intelligence and a report about exact targets—whether it were members of ISIS or Boko Haram or bandits. Whether they are all terrorists,” said Bwala. (The Guardian)

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