Nigeria, US begin mapping of terrorist enclaves nationwide in joint operation
Nigeria and the United States have launched a coordinated security operation aimed at dismantling terrorist enclaves across multiple parts of the country.
This signals a renewed push to degrade the operational reach of violent extremist groups and restore state authority in affected communities.
The joint effort, involving Nigeria’s security agencies and US technical and advisory support, is focused on intelligence-driven raids, surveillance, and disruption of logistics networks believed to sustain insurgent and terror cells operating in remote and urban locations.
THISDAY learnt that the operation is prioritising precision actions during the mapping and surveillance activities and is designed to limit civilian harm while striking high-value targets, with the collaboration building on long-standing defence and counterterrorism ties between both countries.
Also Monday, the military and police authorities announced extensive security measures, including large-scale deployment of personnel and operational assets nationwide, to ensure a peaceful and crime-free celebration.
The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) disclosed that the Armed Forces of Nigeria (AFN), working in collaboration with other security agencies, had intensified operations across the country, particularly in areas assessed as vulnerable to criminals and terrorists’ threats.
On the Nigeria-US collaboration, the Donald Trump-led nation is providing advanced intelligence, reconnaissance capabilities, and capacity-building support, with the operation expected to enhance information-sharing across agencies, closing gaps previously exploited by the terrorist groups.
The renewed offensive comes amid persistent security challenges linked to terrorism, banditry, and violent extremism, which have strained local economies and displaced thousands.
Already, the US has been conducting intelligence-gathering flights over large parts of Nigeria since late November, according to flight tracking data and current and former US officials, in a sign of increased security cooperation between the countries.
But the flights in West Africa follow US President Donald Trump’s threats in November to militarily intervene in Nigeria over what he says is its failure to stop violence targeting Christian communities. The flights also are occurring just months after a US pilot working for a missionary agency was kidnapped in neighbouring Niger.
The US contractor-operated aircraft used for the surveillance operations typically takes off from Ghana and flies over Nigeria before returning to Accra, the Ghanaian capital, the tracking data for December showed.
Besides, the flight tracking data showed the operator is Mississippi-based Tenax Aerospace, which provides special mission aircraft and works closely with the US military, according to the company’s website.
Liam Karr, the Africa Team Lead for the Critical Threats Project at the American Enterprise Institute, who analysed the flight data told Reuters that the operation appeared to be running out of an airport in Accra, a known hub for the US military’s logistics network in Africa.
Karr said the operation was an early sign the US was rebuilding its capacity in the region after Niger ordered US troops to leave a sprawling, newly built air base in the desert last year, and turned instead to Russia for security assistance.
“In recent weeks we have seen a resumption of intelligence and surveillance flights in Nigeria,” Karr said in an interview. A former US official told Reuters that the aircraft is among several assets the Trump administration moved to Ghana in November.
It is unclear how many aircraft remain in Ghana, but the former official said the missions include tracking down the kidnapped US pilot and gathering intelligence on militant groups operating in Nigeria. Boko Haram and its splinter organisation, Islamic State West Africa Province, are among the militant groups operating in Nigeria.
Also, a current US official confirmed the aircraft has been flying over Nigeria but declined to provide details given the diplomatic sensitivity of the issue.
A separate administration official told Reuters that Washington was continuing to work with Nigeria to “address religious violence, anti-Christian attacks, and the destabilising spread of terrorism.”
While Nigeria’s government has said armed groups target both Muslims and Christians, the US claims that Christians facing persecution do not represent a complex security situation and ignore efforts to safeguard religious freedom. But Nigeria has agreed to work with the US to bolster its forces against militant groups.
The Tenax Aerospace aircraft was seen on November 7 by flight tracking data at MacDill Air Force Base, which is home to the headquarters of the United States Special Operations Command in Tampa, Florida. It flew to Ghana on November 24, just days after the high-level meeting between US and Nigerian security officials, according to flight tracking data.
The data showed the aircraft has flown over Nigeria almost daily since the start of the operation. The aircraft is a Gulfstream V, a long-range business jet often modified for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance missions, according to the data seen by Reuters.
Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu declared a security emergency last month and ordered the army and police to begin mass recruitment to tackle worsening armed violence across the country.
