President Trump announced Friday that a joint military operation between U.S. and Nigerian forces successfully eliminated Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, who served as the global second-in-command for ISIS.
“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. 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,” Trump wrote in a statement posted to Truth Social.
The president also expressed gratitude to Nigeria’s government for their cooperation in carrying out the mission.
This operation comes after previous tensions between Trump and Nigeria, as the president had previously claimed that Christians in the African nation were facing persecution – allegations that Nigeria’s government has disputed.
Last Christmas Day, U.S. forces conducted strikes against what officials described as Islamist strongholds in Nigeria’s northwest region, actions that followed Trump’s earlier criticisms of the country.
