In northwest Nigeria, U.S. confronts a growing terrorist threat

"On Christmas night, President Donald Trump announced that United States had launched airstrikes against the group, known here as Lakurawa, part of what the White House and its allies have described as a campaign to put a stop to the "slaughter of Christians" in Nigeria. But the U.S. strikes were largely ineffective, Nigerian officials, analysts and residents said, and there are very few Christians in Sokoto to protect. The state, once part of a 19th-century caliphate, remains overwhelmingly Islamic, and it is Muslims in villages like this one who have borne most of the violence in Sokoto."

"Yet no one here denies there is a real and growing security crisis. Islamist militants from several different groups have wrought havoc in Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger in recent years while quietly extending their reach into northern Nigeria. Most researchers see Lakurawa as an extension of the Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP), which is strongest along the borderlands between Mali and Niger but has shown the ability to strike high-profile targets. Its fighters kidnapped an American missionary in central Niamey, Niger's capital, late last year and, just last week, executed a large-scale attack on Niger's international airport."

Militant fighters attacked the village of Baidi, killing six residents and leaving bloodstains and bullet holes in civilian shelters. The attackers are believed to be Lakurawa, an African affiliate of the Islamic State, operating in northwestern Sokoto state. U.S. airstrikes were announced as targeting Lakurawa but were widely judged ineffective, and Sokoto's overwhelmingly Muslim population means most victims are Muslims rather than Christians. Islamist groups from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have expanded into northern Nigeria. Researchers identify Lakurawa as linked to the Islamic State Sahel Province (ISSP), which has kidnapped foreigners and struck high-profile targets.

Read at The Washington Post