Daily Trust Editorial, Monday May 25, 2026
On May 16, 2026, President Donald Trump announced that American and Nigerian forces executed a major joint operation involving air and ground precision strikes targeting compounds and fighters of ISIS/ISWAP in Lake Chad Basin/Metele area, Borno State. Senior ISIS leader Abu Bilal al-Minuki, a high-valued global terror second-in-command stationed in West Africa, was among those killed.
The next day, U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) said it launched follow-up joint kinetic airstrikes in coordination with Nigerian forces targeted at ISIS checkpoints, weapons caches, logistics hubs, and financing networks. Later, Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters reported that over 175 terrorists’ commanders and fighters were killed in the series of joint strikes as of May 19 and that there were no casualties on the side of U.S. or Nigerian forces. Military spokesman, Major General Samaila Uba, added in a statement: “The joint operations will continue to hunt down and destroy those who threaten our nation and regional stability.”
Daily Trust commends the joint operations aimed at significant degradation of terrorist leadership, reduction of insecurity in Nigeria and the restoration of regional stability. We urge that the cooperation be extended to the location of safe havens for any armed group within the Nigerian territory in order to help in neutralising more terror fighters, camps, logistics and leaders, thereby directly reducing mass murder, kidnapping for ransom, and regional destabilisation.
Nigeria has had defence training, equipment and intelligence sharing cooperation prior to the recent kinetic joint operations. The first was the December 25, 2025 U.S. unilateral operation involving MQ-9 Reaper drones and Tomahawk missiles against terrorists in Bauni forest, Tangaza Local Government Area, near the border with Niger. But the May 16 and subsequent operations were coordinated with Nigerian consent and authorities. This is as it should be.
While Nigerian forces lead on ground and with necessary mutually agreed interdiction strikes, the U.S. should augment with high-end enablers including advanced drones, precision munitions, real-time intel fusion.
This is because Nigeria’s sole reliance on any foreign powers risks influence, intelligence dependency and open perceptions of weakness. Moreover, we doubt if there is a way that even in this joint operations, U.S. and Nigeria’s long-term interests would likely be identical or permanent. So, the way forward, even while the joint operations are ongoing, is for Nigeria to embrace long-term solutions.
Towards this, we call on our all political leaders to understand that precision strikes alone cannot obliterate the activities of terrorists, bandits or non-state actors. They must learn to put and serve Nigeria’s interests first. There should be deliberate efforts to reform and pursue people-oriented development initiatives which denies non-state actors recruitment or operational propaganda. We also counsel all government to understand that it is the failure of good governance that created the enabling environment that has made terrorists and bandits to find solace.
We also call on citizens to demand the resolution of domestic issues as a matter of priority just as we also urge leaders to fully embrace the required military reform, good governance initiatives, economic development in the north and ending corruption that diverts funds.
We also remind all Nigerians to see the joint cooperation and operations for what it is – as a temporary force multiplier and not a permanent solution to ending terrorism and banditry. A nation’s sovereignty is best served by a patriotic and professional military and security sector working in tandem with purposeful civilian authorities poised to deploy the political will to do right to all manner of people at all times.
Daily Trust also cautions President Tinubu as Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and the Nigerian military to bear in mind that this is Nigeria’s war to lose or win. It should not be outsourced. The Nigerian military should not rely or lean on U.S. forces in order to discharge their constitutional duties.
We also urge the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) and the Nigerian Army aviation wing to learn from the U.S.-led airstrikes as they avoided bombing public places especially markets or other gatherings but targeted the residential areas and hideouts of the terrorists. We insist that henceforth, there should be zero tolerance for bombing of any public place. The war should be carried to the terrorists or bandits’ hideouts or camps.
We also urge the Nigerian-U.S. authorities to consider extending the joint operations to from the Lake Chad Basin area to the Northwest and Northcentral hideouts and operational areas of bandits and terrorists especially the Lakurawa group.
We also call on the Nigerian military to always come clean and properly identify every casualty in their operations in order to stop the misidentification of terrorists or other criminals killed in action. The recent case is embarrassing enough. The military has enough competent professionals and they should be deployed to maintain the sanctity and good reputation of the military institution which should be protected at all times.
The activities of terror groups must cease and Nigeria becomes a territory where no terrorist or bandit will find any breathing space to operate. This is the hope the joint operations have rekindled.
