The United States has deployed multiple surveillance drones and about 200 troops to Nigeria to support the country’s fight against Islamist militants, according to US and Nigerian officials.
Officials told Reuters that the deployment includes MQ-9 drones dedicated to intelligence gathering and surveillance operations. The drones are not conducting airstrikes and the American troops are not embedded with Nigerian frontline units.
The move comes amid growing security concerns in Nigeria’s North-East and parts of the wider Sahel region, where militant groups linked to extremist networks have continued to stage attacks on civilian and military targets.
A US defence official explained that the deployment followed a request by Nigeria and is aimed at strengthening intelligence gathering and coordination in counter-insurgency operations.
“We see this as a shared security threat,” the official told Reuters, stressing that the mission focuses primarily on surveillance and intelligence support rather than direct combat.
The drones are part of the MQ-9 Reaper fleet commonly used by the United States Armed Forces for reconnaissance and intelligence missions.
Confirming the development, Major General Samaila Uba, Director of Defence Information at Nigeria’s Defence Headquarters, said the US assets are currently being operated from an airfield in Bauchi State.
According to him, the deployment is part of broader security cooperation between Nigeria and the US, particularly through a recently established intelligence fusion cell.
“This support builds on the newly established US–Nigeria intelligence fusion cell, which continues to deliver actionable intelligence to our field commanders,” Uba told Reuters.
The development follows the closure of a major US drone base in Niger in 2024. The facility, reportedly valued at about $100 million, previously hosted around 1,000 US troops and served as a key surveillance hub tracking militant activities across the Sahel region.
The base was shut down after Niger’s military government ordered US forces to withdraw following the country’s political transition.
Security analysts say the relocation of US surveillance assets to Nigeria could strengthen regional intelligence efforts against extremist groups operating across West Africa.
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