US Bombs ISIS Targets in Nigeria on Christmas in Retaliation Against “Anti-Christian Discrimination”
On Christmas Day, the United States government carried out missile strikes against ISIS camps in Sokoto, Nigeria. After launching over a dozen Tomahawk missiles from a nearby ship, Trump and his lackeys in the government crowed about their retaliation against “anti-Christian discrimination,” with Laura Loomer, a right-wing activist, saying, “I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Christmas than by avenging the death of Christians through the justified mass killing of Islamic terrorists,” and Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of Defense, tweeting, “The @DeptofWar is always ready, so ISIS found out tonight — on Christmas. More to come…”
Why does the United States Department of Defense have an “Africa Command” in the first place? Supposed concerns about “religious freedom” and “Islamism” are simply the latest justification for a long history of US military imperialism. As the timing of the strike, along with Loomer and Hegseth’s comments, makes very clear, claims of a “Christian genocide” function as pandering to the religious right in the United States rather than as an accurate description of the conflict in Nigeria. Nigerian authorities have pointed out that ISIS and other insurgent groups carry out just as much violence against Muslims as against Christians, a fact obscured by Washington’s framing of the attacks in explicitly religious terms. These strikes also come only one week after similar US attacks in Syria, reinforcing how routine such operations have become.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/25/us/politics/trump-isis-nigeria-strike.html
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/dec/26/trump-supporters-nigeria-airstrikes
US Threats Precipitate Presidential Victory in Honduras for Trump-Backed Candidate to Combat “Narcocommunism”
A winner has been declared in the Presidential election of Honduras, following a contentious month of voter fraud claims and vote recounts, by-hand. President-elect Nasry Asfura of the right-wing National Party barely came out on top with 40.3% of the vote, less than 1% more than runner-up candidate Salvador Nasralla, of the nation’s other right-wing Liberal Party. Nasralla previously served as the Vice President of Honduras, though previously as a member of the left-wing Liberty and Refoundation (LIBRE) Party; it was just last year that he switched over to the Liberal Party.
It’s pretty safe to say that Asfura can attribute his win to Trump and classic US meddling in Latin American elections. Mere days before the election on November 30th, Trump took to Truth Social to fear-monger and throw his support behind Nasfura, dubbing the former Mayor of Tegucigulpa the “only real friend of Freedom in Honduras”, adding that both far-right administrations could join forces to combat “Narcocommunists”, referring to the LIBRE Party—the current party in power, under the leadership of President Xiomara Castro—an ally to Venezuela.
On top of his endorsement, Trump made sure to issue a threat to cut financial assistance coming from the US to Honduras, one of the poorest countries in Latin America, the state of which is largely tied to US imperialist plunder that has plagued the Latin America for decades; Honduran voters have admitted to having switched their choice of presidential candidate following Trump’s words of intimidation.
The US interference does not stop there. Former campaign manager of Trump’s 2020 presidential bid, Brad Parscale, joined Asfura’s team as a political consultant—which Parscale denies—providing intel on the use of data to influence voters.
The initial tie between candidates Asfura and Nasralla was followed by uncorroborated claims of electoral fraud from Trump, who once again took to social media to issue yet another threat: if his favorable candidate, Asfura, was not announced as the election winner, “there [would] be hell to pay!”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio followed by congratulating President-elect Asfura on X for his win, adding that he looks forward to advancing the “prosperity and security of our hemisphere” and calling for a peaceful transition of power. The US imperialists are loudly and proudly announcing their self-appointed ownership over the entire North and South American continents.
Asfura joins the ranks of far-right leadership in Latin American countries, from El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele—political architect of the present-day repressive crackdown across the nation, with mega-prison CECOT as his pride and joy—to Argentina’s troll-faced Javier Milei—who jumped to defend Elon Musk after his nazi salute.
This election loss makes for four unsuccessful bids for President of Honduras for Nasralla; it seems switching political parties, kissing up to US republicans, and sporting MAGA gear, as his wife did, didn’t work out for him this time.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/24/world/americas/honduras-election-results-asfura.html
Zelensky Proposes 20-Point Peace Plan to End Russia-Ukraine War
On December 24, President Zelensky announced a draft 20-point peace plan in negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine War. A pared-down version of a previous 28-point plan brokered between the US and Moscow, this plan outlines concessions on key disputes that have stalled peace talks thus far.
One of the disputes in question: the Donetsk region, a “fortress belt” of Ukrainian cities at the front lines against Russian advancement. Putin had proposed creating a demilitarized zone that requires Ukraine to unilaterally withdraw all its troops, even from territories which Russia has even yet to capture, and Zelensky agreed on the condition that Russia cede an equivalent amount of their occupied land in Donetsk. Zelensky also shot down an earlier Washington proposal that the US, Ukraine, and Russia could share control and profits from a Russian-occupied nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia — the largest of its type in all of Europe. Ukraine needs the plant for its postwar reconstruction, he argues, so Moscow must be pulled from the trade agreement.
But this peace plan, just like all of Zelensky’s prior plans, is hardly a reprieve for the Ukrainian masses. It’s a diplomatic chess move designed to hardwire Ukraine’s alignment with the West. Zelensky highlights “security guarantees,” which are code for increased US and European military presence and protections granted via NATO integration. The plan also calls for a concrete plan for Ukraine to obtain EU membership, meaning preferential access to the EU market, a free-trade agreement with the US that opens access to the extraction of minerals and natural resources, and various development and recovery packages tied to Western capital. “Peace,” according to Zelensky, would not be a restoration of Ukrainian democratic sovereignty, but a win for NATO and Western imperialism and the nation’s ruling class.
However, the deal seems unlikely to resolve in Zelensky’s favor. In a December 12th briefing, Trump seems more interested in throwing his weight around as the international peacekeeper, even if it means handing Ukraine over to Russia and betraying the US’s own interests. He “is extremely frustrated with both sides of this war. He doesn’t want any more talk. He wants action. He wants this war to come to an end.”
Now the pressure is on Moscow to comment on the deal and, as Zelensky stresses, the Ukrainian people, who are to vote on the agreement in a potential nationwide referendum.
Sources:
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/25/world/europe/russia-ukraine-peace-plan.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/24/world/europe/what-is-in-the-20-point-ukraine-peace-plan.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/12/world/europe/ukraine-trump-peace-plan-counterproposal.html
Behind Enemy Lines 
Leave a comment