US withdraws troops from Nigeria after Islamic State mission

Despite the withdrawal, US military personnel stationed in Nigeria before the Lake Chad Basin operation have remained in the country, military spokesperson Major General Samaila Uba told the BBC.

Military cooperation between Nigeria and the US increased after Washington accused Nigerian authorities of not doing enough to protect vulnerable groups against Islamist militants, and alleged there was a "Christian genocide" in the country.

Announcing that most of these troops had now left, General Dagvin Anderson, Commander of US Air Forces in Africa, said on Thursday that the operation had been successful and that IS' leadership in Nigeria had been "significantly degraded".