Since the return of Donald Trump to office in January 2025, the US has carried out quick military strikes on several countries, including oil-rich Nigeria and Venezuela, which is the latest.
Legal experts express worry that the US continuously disregards international law and the sovereignty of the affected countries.
The strikes on Venezuela by the Trump administration were perhaps the most attention-grabbing and controversial. US forces deployed around 150 aircraft, descending on the Latin American country.
Then, the American forces captured President Nicolas Maduro and his wife and flew them to the US, where they are being tried on terror and drug-related charges, which they have long denied.
Deaths and damage
The strikes on Saturday, 3 January, resulted in the deaths of dozens of civilians and soldiers, as well as significant damage to infrastructure.
However, Washington said no US casualties were recorded. Venezuela has the world’s largest oil reserves, and Trump did not hide his main mission.
"So we're gonna have the big oil companies go in and they're going to fix the infrastructure, they're gonna invest money,'' Trump told journalists after the capture of Maduro.
Before Venezuela, the US had carried out air strikes on Nigeria, another resource-rich country, on 25 December, claiming to target what it called Daesh terrorists in Sokoto State.
That happened nearly two months after President Trump said the US would launch attacks in Nigeria to "protect Christians".
The Nigerian authorities said it was a joint operation with the Nigerian military.
Another African country struck by the Trump administration is Somalia.
The US carried out attacks, targeting al Shabab terrorists, first in February and the latest on 14 December, according to media reports.
Iran’s nuclear programme
Iran was also targeted by the Trump administration. The US attacked three nuclear facilities in June, citing concerns over Iran's nuclear programme.
Iran has always insisted that its nuclear programme is for civilian and peaceful purposes.
Yemen, Iraq, and Syria have also come under military strikes by the US since Trump's return to the White House, with Washington saying terrorists were the targets.
Although the US has given various reasons for the attacks on different countries, many observers say there is one single purpose: the US wants to have greater access to oil and other valuable economic resources in the affected countries through coercion.
