The United States has resumed intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations over Nigeria’s north-east, focusing on militant activity in the Sambisa forest, days after air strikes on ISIS-linked fighters in Sokoto State.
A Sahel-focused terrorism tracker, Brant Philip, revealed that US surveillance flights restarted on Saturday, sharing flight-tracking data showing a US aircraft operating over Borno State. The aircraft identified was a Gulfstream V, a jet commonly adapted for ISR missions.
According to open-source analysts, the operation targets the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), the ISIS affiliate active in Nigeria’s north-east and the Lake Chad region. The ISR missions reportedly resumed after a brief one-day pause following the Sokoto strikes.
Flight data shows the missions began on November 24, with aircraft taking off from Ghana, which serves as a logistics hub for US military operations in West Africa. The jet involved has been linked to Tenax Aerospace, a US special-mission aviation company known for supporting American military activities.
Security sources say the surveillance flights are aimed at gathering intelligence on militant groups and tracking an American pilot kidnapped in neighbouring Niger Republic.
The renewed US operations come weeks after Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, met with US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth in Washington, amid heightened tensions following President Donald Trump’s warning of possible military action in Nigeria. After the meeting, Hegseth said the US would work closely with Nigeria to counter jihadist violence.
Thursday night’s air strikes in north-west Nigeria were described by Trump as the “first fulfilment” of that commitment, with the US President warning that further strikes could follow.
