The United States has carried out a strike against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria at the request of Nigeria's government.
President Donald Trump and the US military confirmed the attack, claiming the group had been targeting Christians in the region.
"Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!," Mr Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Mr Trump also said the strike was originally supposed to take place on Wednesday, but he ordered it delayed by a day.
"They were going to do it earlier," Mr Trump told Politico in an interview.
"And I said, 'nope, let's give a Christmas present.’ … They didn’t think that was coming, but we hit them hard. Every camp got decimated," he said.
The US military's Africa Command said the strike was carried out in Sokoto state in coordination with Nigerian authorities and killed multiple militants.
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A US defence official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the strike was carried out by about a dozen Tomahawk missiles launched from a US Navy warship.
The US official said another strike did not appear imminent, but did not rule out future operations.
This specific strike was carried out by the United States, the official said, in part because the location was too remote for Nigerian forces to reach.
"It's partially symbolic," the official said, adding that the aim was also deterrence and to send a message that the Trump administration was prepared to use the military.
Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Maitama Tuggar told the BBC that the strike was a "joint operation" targeting "terrorists" and it "has nothing to do with a particular religion".
Without naming ISIS specifically, Mr Tuggar said the operation had been planned "for quite some time" and had used intelligence information provided by the Nigerian side.
He did not rule out further strikes, adding that this depended on "decisions to be taken by the leadership of the two countries".
The strike comes after President Trump began warning two months ago that Christianity faces an "existential threat" in Nigeria and threatened to militarily intervene in the West African country over what he says is its failure to stop violence targeting Christian communities.
It was reported that the US has been conducting intelligence-gathering flights over large parts of Nigeria since late November.
Nigeria’s foreign ministry said the strike was carried out as part of ongoing security cooperation with the United States, involving intelligence sharing and strategic coordination to target militant groups.
"This has led to precision hits on terrorist targets in Nigeria by air strikes in the North West," the ministry said on social media.
A video posted by the Pentagon showed at least one projectile launched from a warship.
A US defense official said the strike targeted multiple militants at known ISIS camps.
US defense secretary Pete Hegseth thanked the Nigerian government for its support and cooperation and added: "More to come..."
Nigeria's government has said that armed groups target both Muslims and Christians, and US claims that Christians face persecution do not represent the complex security situation and ignore efforts to safeguard religious freedom.
However, it has agreed to work with the US to bolster its forces against militant groups.
The country's population is split between Muslims living primarily in the north and Christians in the south.
Yesterday, a suspected suicide bomber killed at least five people and injured 35 at a mosque in Nigeria's northeast, another region troubled by Islamist insurgents.
In a Christmas message posted on social media, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu called for peace in his country, "especially between individuals of differing religious beliefs".
He also said: "I stand committed to doing everything within my power to enshrine religious freedom in Nigeria and to protect Christians, Muslims, and all Nigerians from violence."
President Trump issued his statement on the strike while he was at his Palm Beach, Florida, Mar-a-Lago Club, where he has been spending the holiday.
The US military last week launched separate large-scale strikes against dozens of Islamic State targets in Syria, after he vowed to hit back in the wake of a suspected Islamic State attack on American personnel in the country.
