November 06, (THEWILL) — Doubts and uncertainty have continued to trail the United States’ proposed counter-terror military operation in Nigeria, following reports that top Pentagon officials and military strategists are sceptical about the feasibility and effectiveness of President Donald Trump’s directive to intervene militarily in the country.
According to The New York Times, the United States is perfecting plans for a possible military action in Nigeria amid growing concern over attacks and threats faced by Christian communities in the northern region.
However, internal assessments from the Pentagon and the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) suggest that the intervention may not yield the desired results.
The report stated that the U.S. Secretary of Defence, Pete Hegseth, had requested AFRICOM to develop an operational plan after the President’s directive. In response, the command presented several strategic options classified as “heavy”, “medium”, and “light”, depending on the scale of U.S. engagement.
Yet, senior defence officials quoted in the report warned that none of the options guarantee success in tackling the entrenched insurgency.
“American forces are unlikely to be able to end a decades-long insurgency in Africa’s most populous country, despite President Trump’s order”, one official was quoted as saying.
The officials reportedly cautioned that only a full-scale campaign similar to the Iraq or Afghanistan operations could make a lasting impact, a route they described as highly unlikely and politically unsustainable.
“The American military cannot do much to quell the violence unless it is willing to start an Iraq- or Afghanistan-style campaign”, the source said, adding that no one in Washington appears ready to commit to such an approach.
According to The New York Times, the proposed U.S. operations could involve targeted drone strikes using MQ-9 Reaper and MQ-1 Predator aircraft, or coordinated raids with Nigerian forces in insurgent strongholds across the country’s northern corridor. But even these limited options, military experts warn, would have only a modest and short-term impact.
“Airstrikes can disrupt movements or eliminate a few high-value targets, but they won’t solve the ideological, political, or economic roots of extremism in Nigeria”, one analyst said, highlighting the deeper complexities behind the insurgency.
The scepticism within the Pentagon underscores concerns that an American military operation could trigger unintended consequences, including civilian casualties, anti-American sentiment, and renewed hostility from militant factions seeking to portray the conflict as a Western crusade.
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