At Least Three Tomahawk Missiles Used by the USA to Attack ISIS in Nigeria Failed to Reach Targets

At least three Tomahawk cruise missiles from a “powerful and deadly strike” by the United States against ISIS in Nigeria fell short of their targets: in the morning after the attack, local residents found missile debris and unexploded warheads.

The photo of the wreckage was published by conflict researcher Trevor Ball of the investigative journalism group Bellingcat.

US President Donald Trump has ordered a “powerful and deadly strike” against Islamic State positions in Nigeria, but the strike also hit the Offa district of Kwara State.

Tajudeen Alabi, a former special assistant to the governor of Kwara State for security, confirmed the incident to the BBC.

According to him, locals heard the sound of an explosion three times at around 21:00 local time on December 25. He said that the missiles hit and destroyed buildings in several places, but that no fatalities have been reported so far, although some people were injured.

“At least about five buildings were destroyed in different places. We saw some objects in one popular hotel, which we call Offa Central Hotel. It looked like a bomb,” said Tajudeen Alabi.

The Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs also confirmed the strikes and said they were carried out in cooperation with the United States.

According to the ministry, this cooperation led to “targeted strikes on terrorist targets in Nigeria and airstrikes in the northwest.”

The published photos show the WDU-36/B high-explosive warheads weighing 310 kilograms, as well as the remains of the wing of one of the missiles. Presumably, when a deviation from the course was detected, the safety mechanism blocked the fuze, which led to the malfunction of the warheads.

Back in November, Trump threatened to cut off aid and intervene to Nigeria to “completely destroy Islamic terrorists” if the government “does not protect Christians” and instructed the Department of War to prepare for “possible actions.”

In response to Trump’s threat, Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu said that his country is not a religiously intolerant state.

For more than 20 years, Nigeria has been in a confrontation with the jihadist group Boko Haram. According to the United Nations, since 2009 alone, more than 40,000 people have been killed by jihadists and more than two million Nigerians have become forced refugees.