The United States is set to deploy about 200 troops to Nigeria to train the country’s military in combating Islamist militants, a U.S. official said on Tuesday.
The move comes weeks after President Donald Trump ordered airstrikes against what he described as Islamic State targets.
Last week, the U.S. military confirmed that it had sent a small team of troops to Nigeria, without specifying the number. This marked the first public acknowledgment of American forces on the ground since Washington carried out airstrikes on Christmas Day.
According to Reuters, President Trump has indicated that further U.S. military action in Nigeria remains possible. Reuters also reported that the United States had been conducting surveillance flights over Nigeria from Ghana since at least late November.
According to the U.S. official, the 200 troops will reinforce a small number of American military personnel already in Nigeria, supporting local forces in their operations.
U.S. Africa Command did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Nigeria has faced mounting pressure from Washington following President Trump’s allegation that the West African nation has failed to adequately protect Christians from Islamist militants operating in the northwest.
However, the Nigerian government has denied any systematic persecution of Christians, stating that its security forces are targeting Islamist fighters and other armed groups responsible for attacks on both Christians and Muslims.
Militant groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) have intensified attacks on military convoys and civilians, with the northwest remaining a key hotspot in the 17-year insurgency.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country with over 230 million people, is nearly evenly divided between Christians, who largely reside in the south, and Muslims, who are predominantly in the north.
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