Trump: US and Nigerian Forces Kill Islamic State Deputy Leader

President Donald Trump announced that U.S. and Nigerian forces have killed the global second-in-command of the Islamic State group, Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, in a joint operation.

“Tonight, at my direction, brave American forces and the Armed Forces of Nigeria flawlessly executed a meticulously planned and very complex mission to eliminate the most active terrorist in the world from the battlefield,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform Friday.

“Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, second in command of ISIS globally, thought he could hide in Africa, but little did he know we had sources who kept us informed on what he was doing,” the president added.

Al-Minuki had been placed under U.S. sanctions in 2023 for his ties to the Islamic State group, according to the Treasury Department.

“He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans,” Trump said. “With his removal, ISIS’s global operation is greatly diminished.”

Trump thanked the Nigerian government for its partnership in the operation but did not disclose the exact location or type of attack used.

Al-Minuki, a Nigerian national, was designated a “specially designated global terrorist” by the Biden administration in 2023, according to the U.S. Federal Register. The State Department at the time called him a Sahel-based IS senior leader and part of the group’s General Directorate of Provinces, which provides operational guidance and funding worldwide.

Trump has previously criticized Nigeria for failing to protect Christians from Islamist militants in the northwest region.

Nigeria denies discriminating against any religion, stating that its security forces target armed groups that attack both Christians and Muslims.

U.S. forces carried out strikes targeting Islamic State-linked militants in Nigeria in December, followed by a deployment of drones and 200 troops to provide training and intelligence support against IS and al-Qaeda-linked insurgencies spreading across West Africa.

Washington has since deployed drones and 200 troops to train and assist the Nigerian military, according to Pentagon statements earlier this year.

U.S. forces operated in a strictly non-combat role, Nigerian military officials said earlier this year.