The United States airstrikes that targeted Islamic State group militants in northwestern Nigeria on Thursday marked a major escalation in an offensive that the West African's overstretched military has struggled with for years. US President Donald Trump said on social media that the "powerful and deadly" strikes in the state of Sokoto were carried out against IS gunmen who were "targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians". Residents and security analysts have said Nigeria's security crisis affects both Christians, predominant in the south, and Muslims, who are the majority in the north. In an interview on Friday with Politico, Trump said he decided on the timing of the strikes. "They were going to do it earlier," he said. "And I said, 'Nope, let's give a Christmas present.'" Nigeria, which is battling multiple armed groups, said the US strikes were part of an exchange of intelligence and strategic coordination between the two countries. The Associated Press cou