Donald Trump once again showed his geopolitical unpredictability on Christmas Eve, raining missiles upon suspected Isis militants camped along Nigeria’s northern border.
The US President said airily the militants had been “targeting and viciously killing” innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and characterised the military operation as “powerful”, with more strikes promised.
But experts have warned that this operation has the potential to spark further conflict in the region and stir support for Isis-linked groups, jarring with Trump’s ambition to end foreign conflicts. Experts also warn of security implications for US allies, such as the UK.
A network of jihadists groups have long sought refuge in a band of countries stretching across northern Africa, known as the Sahel, where Isis offshoots have posed a consistent threat of violent extremism. Terror attacks and violence have plagued the region for more than a decade, killing thousands of people.
Nick Aldworth, the former national co-ordinator for counter-terror policing, said the Sahel is a region of weak governments and security infrastructure making it “ripe” for terrorist offshoots to grow. He said the region is home to the “core” of Isis.
Aldworth said a “sustained international effort” would help resolve the area’s issues with extremists, rather than military strikes which risk plunging the issue into further violence.
The strikes were seemingly planned for some weeks, with Trump labelling Nigeria a “country of particular concern” for violations of religious freedoms in October. He then ordered the US Department of War to prepare for military intervention a month later.
Trump has been critical of the Nigerian government’s attempts to fight Isis within its own borders, previously accusing the state of failing to protect Christians from a “genocide” at the hands of jihadists.
Nicholas Williams – a former senior official at Nato and the Ministry of Defence – said the strikes served as a message to the home government.
“US strikes in Nigeria are as much a signal to the Nigerian government to do more against Islamist terrorism if they want to profit from a promised economic partnership or avoid a reduction in aid and assistance,” he said.
The Isis threat beyond Africa
While US and UK foreign policy is experiencing a period of misalignment, extremist groups are quick to target the US through its traditional allies.
When asked what that the potential knock-on effects of the military action could be, Williams said this would increase hostilities for Brits moving inside Nigeria and the wider Sahel, as well as provide inspiration for attacks on UK soil.
He told The i Paper: Though Nigerian Islamist groups have not shown any sign or inclination for terrorist attacks in the UK, there is a risk, albeit small, of self-radicalising individuals from among the large Nigerian Muslim population in the UK attacking British targets.”
Aldworth added that we could see “an increase in propaganda” from the wider Isis group and “potentially attacks on Western assets inside Sahel countries”.
@theipaperPresident Donald Trump has said the US launched a “powerful and deadly strike” against the Islamic State (IS) group in north-western Nigeria. In a social media post, he described IS as “terrorist scum”, accusing the group of “targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians”. US officials said the air strikes targeted Islamic State militants and were carried out alongside Nigerian authorities. Nigeria has been battling Islamist insurgencies for more than a decade, with Islamic State groups operating alongside the better-known Boko Haram. The Nigerian government has not publicly commented on the strikes, which the US says aim to limit the group’s ability to plan and carry out attacks. #USA #DonaldTrump #Nigeria #News
♬ original sound – The i Paper – The i PaperThis week, details of a foiled terrorist plot to kill as many Jewish people as possible in Manchester, inspired by Isis were revealed. Police say the attack would have been “just as awful” as the Bondi beach shooting – which left 15 people dead when gunmen in Australia targeted an event marking the Jewish festival of Hanukkah earlier this month.
It comes in the wake of multiple terror-related arrests across Europe, the recent Isis-inspired attack on a synagogue in Manchester, and the killing of two US soldiers and a US civilian interpreter in Syria by a gunman from Isis.
UK intelligence are growing increasingly concerned about a “renaissance” of Isis support stemming from conflicts in the Middle East, this paper understands.
The US strikes were conducted in co-ordination with the Nigerian government hitting camps run by a group allegedly linked to Isis in Sokoto state, sitting on Nigeria’s border with Niger. An US military “initial assessment” suggested “multiple” fatalities.
Your next read
square COVID INQUIRY ExclusiveMore than £1m a month being spent on 207 civil servants for Covid inquiry
square HEALTH‘I haven’t been out since 2020’: The vulnerable people still shielding from Covid
square HOUSING AnalysisFamilies evacuated from new-build tower blocks over cracking concrete
square POLITICS Big ReadStarmer faces a referendum on his leadership – and it could prove fatal
Francis Tammer, a professor in strategy and security at the University of Exeter, said there was “no precedence” for the strikes, and said they represented a “tokenistic” warning from the US that Isis activities in the region “cannot continue unimpeded”.
She said: “We cannot jump to conclusions that the US is taking a more interventionist approach per se against Isis…attacks against Isis in Syria have been ongoing since 2014.”
The latest move from the White House was another demonstration of US force outside of its border. Williams said the incident will send a message to Islamist terrorists that “the US can hit them at will”.
Analysts and intelligence officials will now be working to analyse the response, and how that plays out on UK soil.
Hence then, the article about trump s air strikes could inspire attacks on uk soil experts warn was published today ( ) and is available on inews ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Trump’s air strikes could inspire attacks on UK soil, experts warn )
Also on site :