US Bombing Of Sokoto Was Not Based On Onitsha Screwdriver Seller Intel – Fani-Kayode Denies Viral Report

Ambassador-designate Femi Fani-Kayode has refuted as false a New York Times report claiming that U.S. airstrikes on parts of Sokoto State were carried out based on intelligence from a civilian source rather than official Nigerian authorities.

Posting on X, Fani-Kayode argued that it was implausible for the US government to rely on information from a private individual using online mapping tools to conduct a military operation.

He said such an action could only have been taken on the basis of intelligence supplied through formal collaboration between US and Nigerian security agencies.

He described the newspaper’s account as misleading and damaging, accusing it of attempting to undermine the credibility of both the Nigerian and U.S. governments and their intelligence-gathering capabilities.

According to Fani-Kayode, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, had already clarified that the operation was carried out in coordination with Nigeria’s Armed Forces and intelligence services.

He added that he personally spoke with the minister shortly after the strike, during which Tuggar confirmed that the intelligence used for the operation was provided by the Nigerian government and outlined the events leading up to it.

Fani-Kayode rejected the report as inaccurate and unprofessional, reiterating that no sovereign nation would permit such a military action without official intelligence cooperation.

He wrote: “Anyone that honestly believes that the U.S. Government based its intelligence to bomb parts of Sokoto State on the intel supplied by an Onitsha-based screwdriver-seller who used Google map to source his information and not on the intel supplied by the Nigerian intelligence services must have a low IQ, low self-esteem and a low intelligence quotient. I respectfully urge such a person to get sense.

“The false and mischevous narrative which has been purposely put out by the New York Times to belittle, demean, embarrass and debase both the Nigerian and the U.S. Governments and their intelligence-gathering capabilities is puerile and childish. No country will allow its country to be bombed in the name of fighting ISIS or anyone else on the words of an Onitsha utensils trader and neither would the Americans take such a precipitous and consequential course of action on the words of such an individual.

“Things just dont work that way. The Nigerian Foreign Minister @YusufTuggar has made it clear that the Americans took the action in collaboration with our Armed Forces and Intelligence agencies and that the intel they used to do so was given to them by our Government.

“I spoke with him exactly ten minutes after the bombing took place and he not only assured me of this but also provided me with details of the build-up to the event. The New York Times story can best be described as not only fake news but also nothing but a hefty load of disingenuous and infantile hogwash and the paper is best flushed down the toilet. Thank you for your attention to this matter.”