US EditionUS drones deployed to Nigeria alongside troops for intelligence, training
The U.S. supports Nigeria against Islamist militants with 200 troops and MQ-9 drones focused on intelligence and training, reinforcing a joint security effort amid ongoing attacks.
- The U.S. military deployed multiple MQ-9 drones and 200 troops to Nigeria to provide training and intelligence support to the Nigerian military at Nigeria's request.
- Militant attacks have intensified across northern Nigeria, including a suicide-bomber assault this past week on a northeastern garrison town, while militants stepped up violence in northwest Nigeria near the Benin and Niger borders; it was not immediately clear who carried out the March 16 attack.
- MQ-9 Reaper drones, which can loiter for more than 27 hours, are collecting intelligence and not carrying out strikes, while Major General Samaila Uba confirmed U.S. assets operate from Bauchi airfield; U.S. troops are not embedded with Nigerian frontline units.
- Officials framed the deployment as a response to a shared security threat and to help identify and track militants, with the U.S.-Nigeria intelligence fusion cell delivering actionable intelligence to field commanders, U.S. defence officials said.
- The deployment signals renewed U.S. engagement against insurgencies across West Africa, following U.S. airstrikes in late 2025 and Ghana-based intelligence flights last year, contrasting with the 2024 closure of a $100 million drone base in Niger with about 1,000 troops.
32 Articles
32 Articles
U.S. military instructors deployed in Nigeria, operating from an air base in Bauchi State, use powerful MQ-9 "Reaper" drones for reconnaissance and intelligence purposes.
Nigeria: U.S. Drones Deployed to Nigeria Alongside Troops for Intelligence and Training
The US military has multiple MQ-9 drones operating in Nigeria alongside 200 troops - in a non-combat role providing training and intelligence support to the military in its fight against Islamist militants across the north, US and Nigerian officials have confirmed.
US drones deployed to Nigeria alongside troops for intelligence and training
The US military has multiple MQ-9 drones operating in Nigeria alongside 200 troops – in a non-combat role providing training and intelligence support to the military in its fight against Islamist militants across the north, US and Nigerian officials have confirmed.
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