The United States has deployed military personnel to Nigeria to work more closely with the Nigerian government against terrorism.
The move comes as part of growing security cooperation between Washington and Abuja.
General Dagvin R.M. Anderson, head of the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), said Nigeria and the US agreed that closer military collaboration was necessary.
He described the deployed unit as small but with specialized abilities, without giving full details of its mission or the number of personnel involved.
Nigerian Defence Minister Christopher Musa confirmed that American forces are now operating in the country, but did not provide further information on their activities.
Before this deployment, the US had been conducting surveillance flights over Nigeria from Ghana since late last year.
The arrival of troops marks the first time US forces have officially been acknowledged on Nigerian soil since airstrikes were carried out in December.
Officials say the US team will focus on gathering intelligence and assisting Nigerian security forces in their fight against extremist groups.
This action follows pressure from Washington after accusations that Nigeria had not adequately protected Christian communities from Islamist militants in the northwest.
.png)
0 Comments
DISCLAIMER
The views and opinions expressed on this platform as comments were freely made by each person under his or her own volition or responsibility and were neither suggested nor dictated by the owners of News PLATFORM or any of their contracted staff. So we take no liability whatsoever for such comments.
Please take note!