In a decisive address to troops in Maiduguri, the capital of Nigeria’s Borno State, newly appointed Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt. Gen. Waidi Shaibu, pledged to escalate military operations against terrorist factions in the country’s volatile northern region. This announcement comes less than a week after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to intervene militarily if Nigeria failed to curb attacks on its Christian population. Shaibu emphasized that the military’s renewed efforts must succeed, declaring that failure is “not an option” as the nation enters a critical phase in its decade-long conflict with extremist groups. He assured troops that all necessary resources, including new combat platforms, have been deployed to ensure victory. Trump’s recent threats to cut aid and designate Nigeria as “a country of particular concern” for alleged Christian persecution have drawn sharp criticism from Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Experts argue that Trump’s characterization of the conflict oversimplifies the complex dynamics of Nigeria’s security challenges, which include religiously motivated violence, farmer-herder clashes, and ethnic rivalries. While Christians are among the victims, the majority of those targeted by armed groups are Muslims in the predominantly Muslim north.