Human rights activist and former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, has strongly criticised alleged United States military strikes carried out on Nigerian soil on Christmas Day, describing the action as a grave violation of the country’s sovereignty and a reflection of weak leadership.
In a statement shared on social media, Sowore said he read reports indicating that the attacks were announced by former U.S. President Donald Trump and the U.S. Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, and were purportedly aimed at terrorist targets within Nigeria.
Although the Nigerian government later claimed it was aware of the operation and described it as a joint effort involving unnamed “international partners,” Sowore dismissed this explanation, insisting that the strikes were executed without Nigeria’s genuine authority or informed consent.
“It is evident that the strikes were carried out without the genuine authority or informed consent of the weaklings masquerading as government under Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” Sowore said.
Reacting specifically to reports of a confirmed strike on a village in Sokoto State, the activist accused the U.S. leadership of indifference to Nigerian lives.
“Judging by the nature of the confirmed strike on a village in Sokoto, it is clear that the U.S. President under whose authority this operation occurred neither understands nor genuinely cares about Nigeria or Nigerians,” he stated.
Sowore further lamented what he described as Nigeria’s inability, despite being Africa’s most populous nation, to protect its people and territorial integrity.
“It is deeply troubling that Nigeria lacks the capable and sovereign leadership required to protect its people and its territory,” he said.
According to him, the alleged incident has reduced Nigeria to a passive observer while its sovereignty is undermined by foreign powers.
“As a result, the country has been reduced to a bystander while its sovereignty is violated under the direction of U.S. President Donald J. Trump,” Sowore added.
Reiterating his long-held position, Sowore argued that Nigeria’s security challenges cannot be solved through foreign military interventions but through credible leadership at home.
“Only true, tested, and informed leadership can protect Nigerians—not imperiled, jaundiced neoconservatives operating from Washington, D.C.,” he said.
