The recent strikes against Islamic State targets in Sokoto State represent a significant blow against terrorism in Nigeria. I commend our government for taking decisive action to protect Nigerian lives and for successfully coordinating this operation with international partners. Terrorism has devastated communities across northern Nigeria, claiming countless innocent lives—Christian and Muslim alike. Any operation that disrupts these brutal networks and prevents future attacks is worth celebrating. Our security forces and officials deserve recognition for their courage in making difficult decisions to keep us safe.

However, as a Christian Nigerian, I must also voice concerns about the path forward. While this operation may have been necessary, we must ask: what precedent does foreign military intervention on our soil set for Nigeria's sovereignty? When external powers conduct airstrikes in our territory, even with approval, we signal a dependence that could undermine our autonomy as a nation. More troubling is how this intervention has been framed as a response to "Christian genocide." As a Christian who has witnessed the suffering of my community, I understand the pain behind this narrative. But it's incomplete and dangerous. Muslims have also been massacred in large numbers by extremist groups. When we reduce our complex security crisis to a religious conflict, we hand terrorists a propaganda tool they'll use to recruit and divide us. Nigeria's strength has always been Christians and Muslims living together. A narrative that pits faiths against each other risks inflaming the very tensions that extremists exploit.

Moving forward, let's celebrate this victory against terrorism while ensuring future operations strengthen—not compromise—our sovereignty. Let's protect all Nigerians equally and invest in our own security capacity. We can be grateful for necessary action while still demanding that our fight against terrorism unites rather than divides us as one nation.