US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that Abu Bilal al-Minuki, the second-in-command of the Islamic State (ISIS) global leadership, had been killed in an operation carried out by US and Nigerian forces.
“Tonight, at my direction, the valiant United States and Nigerian armed forces successfully completed a highly complex and meticulously planned mission to eliminate the world’s most dangerous terrorist from the battlefield,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. “Abu Bilal al-Minuki, the second-in-command of the Islamic State worldwide, thought he could hide in Africa, but he didn’t know we had sources who were keeping us informed of his movements.”
The US president stressed that the operation had significantly weakened the operational capabilities of the Islamic State (ISIS) globally, but he did not reveal any additional details about the timing or location of the operation, or whether there were other victims.
It is unclear whether the American support was limited to air cover or included ground forces.
Trump concluded his post by thanking the Nigerian government for its cooperation, suggesting that the operation was most likely carried out on Nigerian soil.
Nigeria had previously been criticized by Trump, who claimed that Christians there were being persecuted , a claim denied by the African nation's government.
The United States launched airstrikes on what it described as Islamist bases in northwest Nigeria late last year following Trump's accusations.
