ISWAP calls for unity among African Muslims after Trump’s war threat
The Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) has issued a statement responding to remarks attributed to former U.S. President Donald Trump about plans to launch military operations against the group in Nigeria.
According to Zagazola Makama, a security expert, ISWAP released a propaganda message through its usual communication channels, describing Trump as a “reckless American tyrant.”
The group alleged that he was influenced by “evangelical Christian and Jewish advisers” during his administration and claimed his comments reflected an attempt by the U.S. to project itself as a “global defender of Christians”, Makama wrote on his X page.
The extremist group further claimed that such rhetoric could draw the U.S. into new conflicts in countries such as the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique, where militant attacks have caused significant casualties.
According to ISWAP, this development fits into what it described as the broader strategy of the Islamic State movement to stretch the U.S. military across multiple conflict zones.
ISWAP cited battlefields in Iraq, Syria, Somalia, Afghanistan, and the Lake Chad Basin as regions where it believes Washington risks becoming overextended if it decides to intervene militarily.
The group also issued a directive to its fighters, urging them to avoid large gatherings, limit movement, and reduce the use of smartphones, citing a possible increase in U.S. surveillance and drone operations.
The warning was also extended to other Islamic State affiliates around the world.
In its statement, ISWAP called on Muslims in West Africa to “unite” and take the alleged U.S. threat seriously, accusing the West of “crimes against African Muslims.”
