National Security Adviser Malam Nuhu Ribadu on Monday afternoon convened Nigeria’s top military and intelligence chiefs for an urgent closed-door meeting at the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC) in Abuja, hours after United States President Donald Trump warned of possible American military strikes on Nigerian soil. 0 1 30
Security analyst Zagazola Makama, citing sources inside the high-level session, told Guardian Nigeria the gathering was triggered by Trump’s weekend declaration that he had ordered the Pentagon to “prepare for possible action” against “Islamic terrorists” he accused of killing Christians in record numbers. 74
“Participants are reviewing fresh intelligence, mapping diplomatic fallout and crafting a unified response to preserve Nigeria’s sovereignty,” Makama said. “The NSA wants calm, clarity and zero daylight between the services.”
Trump’s original post on Truth Social, published late Saturday, threatened to halt all U.S. aid and send troops “guns-a-blazing” unless Abuja halts what he called a “genocide” against Christians. The president did not name specific incidents, but far-right American commentators have amplified months-old claims of targeted religious cleansing. 2 10
Independent monitors, including the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), insist violence in Nigeria’s troubled north cuts across faiths. Between 2020 and September 2025, 417 Muslims died in 196 targeted attacks—100 more fatalities than the 317 Christians killed in 385 incidents. 13
Makama warned that inflammatory foreign rhetoric risks “emboldening extremists to stage provocative attacks for global cameras” and could unravel delicate inter-faith peace initiatives in flashpoint states.
Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga on Sunday called Trump’s narrative “a gross exaggeration,” stressing that both mosques and churches have been torched in banditry and jihadist raids. “We need American rifles and drones, not designations or threats,” he posted. 7
Sources say Ribadu’s briefing to editors later today will reaffirm Nigeria’s openness to joint counter-terrorism operations—provided they respect Nigerian command and international law.
Across Abuja, diplomats are burning midnight oil. One Western embassy official, speaking anonymously, described Trump’s language as “the diplomatic equivalent of a hand grenade with the pin half-pulled.”
For now, the capital holds its breath. The outcome of Monday’s war-room talks, Makama reports, will be channelled through the Office of the NSA before any public statement lands.
