By Joshua Scheer Trump’s Peace Optimism Collides With Russia’s Intensifying Assault on Kyiv Another morning has arrived with no peace between Ukraine and Russia, despite President Trump repeatedly suggesting that an agreement is either incredibly close—or may never happen at all. It is a familiar refrain, delivered as Russian forces continue to bombard Kyiv and […]
President Trump says the U.S. strikes in Nigeria on Christmas Day were aimed at ISIS fighters and part of a campaign to stop a supposed anti-Christian “genocide” in the country. But residents of the area say there is no recorded history of anti-Christian terrorism, and organizations monitoring violence in the region say there is no evidence to suggest that Christians are killed more than Muslims and other religious groups in Nigeria. This comes as a suicide bomber detonated an explosive inside a mosque in Nigeria’s Borno state on Christmas Day, killing five worshipers and injuring 35 more. “Nigeria has a very serious problem of insecurity that affects a wide range of Nigerians, especially those who live in the more remote parts of the country,” but violence impacts “Muslims more so than Christians,” says Yinka Adegoke, Africa editor of Semafor. Adegoke says Trump’s religious framing has more to do with U.S. culture wars and appeasing his base of evangelicals than seriously reckoning with issues of poverty and violence in Nigeria, which he notes were exacerbated by U.S. cuts to foreign aid.
Mamady Doumbouya, who seized power in a coup in 2021, is predicted to win a seven-year term, cementing the autocrat’s rule in the West African nation.
The drills come just days after Washington approved the sale of one of its biggest ever arms package to Taiwan.
Zelenskyy said that US security guarantees were “100% agreed” and hailed the “great achievements” reached in the meeting.