Bola Ahmed Tinubu

Force in Play

Hosted AFRICOM's Anderson in Abuja Feb 8 ahead of full US troop deployment

On Christmas night 2025, American warplanes struck ISIS-linked camps in northwest Nigeria, killing multiple militants in the first direct U.S. combat action inside the country—now over seven weeks ago. The operation, approved by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu after months of Trump administration threats, targeted Lakurawa/ISSP elements in Sokoto State but alarmed Jabo village residents who reported civilian panic from a missile hitting farmland. By mid-February 2026, escalation deepened as U.S. Africa Command deployed around 200 military personnel, with the initial 100 troops arriving on February 17 at Bauchi Airfield to train and support Nigerian counterterrorism efforts. Nigeria's Defence Headquarters confirmed the deployment was 'planned and deliberate' following a formal Federal Government request for military training, technical support, and intelligence sharing.

Updated Feb 18

Force in Play

Overseeing army deployments after February 2026 massacres while managing US joint strikes and French assistance amid unabated violence

Since March 2025, jihadist attacks, mass kidnappings, and farmer-herder violence across northern and central Nigeria have persisted, with over 160 killed in a February 4, 2026, jihadist massacre in Kwara State alone. Key incidents include a US-Nigeria joint airstrike on December 25, 2025, targeting Islamic State militants, multiple Boko Haram and ISWAP attacks killing dozens of soldiers in January 2026, and partial rescues of hostages amid unabated banditry.

Updated Feb 6

Built World

In office since May 2023

Nigeria imports more solar panels than any African country except South Africa. In the 12 months ending June 2025, Chinese solar module shipments to Nigeria grew by two-thirds—the steepest surge on the continent. The catalyst: a national grid that collapsed 12 times in 2024, fuel prices that tripled after subsidy removal, and 87 million Nigerians still without reliable electricity.

Updated Jan 23

Force in Play

Under intense domestic and international pressure over insecurity and protection of Christians and schoolchildren

In the early hours of November 21, 2025, armed men stormed St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, a remote community in Niger State, and abducted 315 people—303 pupils and 12 staff—in one of Nigeria’s largest school kidnappings since Chibok in 2014. Around 50 children later escaped and made their way home, but the mass abduction ignited national outrage, exposed deep security failures, and intensified scrutiny of Abuja as U.S. officials openly weighed sanctions and other measures to pressure Nigeria to better protect Christian communities and other civilians targeted in northern violence.

Updated Dec 11, 2025