U.S. President says continued attacks on Christians could trigger repeated American military action, as Nigeria disputes claims of religious targeting.

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump has warned that the United States may carry out additional military strikes in Nigeria if attacks on Christians continue.

The warning followed questions about a U.S. airstrike conducted on Christmas Day in northwest Nigeria. The U.S. military said the operation targeted Islamic State fighters at the request of Nigerian authorities. Nigerian officials, however, described the action as a joint counterterrorism mission and insisted it was not directed at any religious group.

“I’d love to make it a one-time strike,” Trump was quoted as saying. “But if they continue to kill Christians, it will be a many-time strike.”

When asked about assessments from his Africa adviser indicating that extremist groups such as Boko Haram and Islamic State have killed more Muslims than Christians, Trump acknowledged Muslim casualties but maintained that Christians remain the primary victims. “It’s mostly Christians,” he said.

Trump has repeatedly spoken out against religious violence in Nigeria. In October, he warned that Christianity faced what he called an “existential threat” in the country and cautioned that the United States could intervene if Nigerian authorities failed to adequately protect Christian communities.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation with over 230 million people, is sharply divided along religious lines, with Christians largely in the south and Muslims predominantly in the north. The country has struggled with persistent insecurity, including Islamist insurgencies, mass kidnappings, and recurring communal violence.

Officials in Abuja have consistently rejected allegations of systematic persecution of Christians, stressing that extremist attacks have claimed both Muslim and Christian lives. While reaffirming cooperation with Washington in the fight against terrorism, the Nigerian government has pushed back against narratives that single out Christians as uniquely at risk.

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