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The Nigerian Senate
The Senate has disclosed plans to hold an executive briefing over the December 25 United States air strikes on terrorist targets in Sokoto State, following concerns raised by Senator Abdul Ningi on the alleged exclusion of the National Assembly from discussions preceding the operation.
Raising the issue under Order 42 (Matters of Privilege) during plenary, Senator Ningi, an opposition lawmaker representing Bauchi Central, argued that the air strikes amounted to an infringement on Nigeria’s territorial integrity and should have involved legislative oversight.
He maintained that the National Assembly, constitutionally mandated to play a role in matters of national security and foreign military engagements, was not consulted before the strikes were carried out.
“It is not right. If we begin to dilly dally, it becomes a problem. The leadership of the National Assembly should be briefed by the security agencies on what actually happened. This is a violation of our territorial integrity”.
The lawmaker cautioned that permitting the executive arm of government to unilaterally approve foreign military operations in Nigeria could set a troubling precedent, warning that other global powers might feel encouraged to act similarly without legislative involvement.
In his response, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said the Senate leadership had already made arrangements to brief lawmakers in an executive session but was unable to do so as planned.
According to Akpabio, the closed-door briefing was postponed following the suspension of legislative activities in honor of the late Senator Godiya Akwashiki, who passed away on December 31, 2025.
“This is a security matter and we really should not discuss it in the open. We wanted to do it behind closed doors yesterday, but because of Senator Akwashiki, we couldn’t. Your point of order is noted and arrangements will be made to brief senators in a closed session”.
The U.S. air strikes were carried out on December 25, 2025 in coordination with Nigerian authorities, targeting camps linked to the Islamic State group. The U.S. Africa Command confirmed that several ISIS fighters were killed in the operation. (Channels TV)
