Nigeria, Dec. 26 -- The United States confirmed Nigeria's involvement in a joint operation against terrorist groups on Thursday, underscoring ongoing security cooperation between both countries.

Although the US government framed the operation as one targeted at terrorists who kill Christians, the Nigerian government said it was targeted at terrorists causing harm to civilian populations in northern states.

In a post on X, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said US President Donald Trump had been unequivocal about the need to end the killing of innocent Christians in Nigeria and other parts of the world.

He added that the US Department of War remained fully prepared, noting that the Islamic State group had been targeted during the operati...