ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — About 100 U.S. troops plus equipment have arrived in Nigeria to help train soldiers in the West African country as the government fights against Islamic militants and other armed groups, the Nigerian military announced Monday.
The arrival followed a request by the Nigerian government to the U.S government for help with training, technical support and intelligence-sharing, the military said in a statement.
The deployment follows an easing of tensions that flared between the U.S. and Nigeria when U.S. President Donald Trump said the country wasn’t protecting Christians from an alleged genocide. The Nigerian government has rejected the accusation, and analysts say it simplifies a very complicated situation in which people are often targeted regardless of their faith.
Maj. Gen. Samaila Uba, spokesman for Nigeria’s Defense Headquarters, previously has said that the U.S. troops won’t engage in combat or have a direct operational role, and that Nigerian forces will have complete command authority.
In December, U.S. forces launched airstrikes on Islamic State group-affiliated militants in northwestern Nigeria. Last month, following discussions with Nigerian authorities in Abuja, the head of U.S. Africa Command confirmed a small team of U.S. military officers were in Nigeria, focused on intelligence support.
Nigeria is facing a protracted fight with dozens of local armed groups increasingly battling for turf, including Islamic sects like the homegrown Boko Haram and its breakaway faction Islamic State West Africa Province. There is also the IS-linked Lakurawa, as well as other “bandit” groups that specialize in kidnapping for ransom and illegal mining.
Recently, the crisis has worsened to include other militants from the neighboring Sahel region, including the Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, which claimed its first attack on Nigerian soil last year. Several thousand people in Nigeria have been killed, according to data from the United Nations. Analysts say not enough is being done by the government to protect its citizens.
While Christians have been among those targeted, analysts and residents say the majority of victims of the armed groups are Muslims in Nigeria’s Muslim-dominated north, where most attacks occur.