Human Rights Activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has condemned reported United States airstrikes on Islamic State (ISIS) targets in Sokoto State, describing the action as a violation of Nigeria’s sovereignty.
In a Facebook post on Friday, Sowore reacted to reports that the strikes were carried out on Christmas Day, following announcements by US President Donald Trump and US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth. He questioned claims by the Nigerian government that it was fully aware of the operation.
“I have read reports that the United States government launched attacks on Nigerian soil on Christmas Day,” Sowore wrote, adding that despite official claims of a joint operation, the strikes were carried out “without the genuine authority or informed consent of the weaklings masquerading as government.”
Sowore argued that the operation showed a lack of concern for Nigeria by the US leadership, saying the confirmed strike on a village in Sokoto suggested that the US president “neither understands nor genuinely cares about Nigeria or Nigerians.”
Describing the development as alarming, he said it was “deeply troubling that Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, lacks the capable and sovereign leadership required to protect its people and its territory.”
According to him, the situation has reduced Nigeria to “a bystander while its sovereignty is violated under the direction of US President Donald J. Trump,” stressing that only “true, tested, and informed leadership can protect Nigerians.”