In a message posted on his Truth Social network, Donald Trump announced on Saturday, May 16, that the American and Nigerian armies had eliminated the number two of Daesh, Abu-Bilal al-Minuki.
Donald Trump announced on Friday that the forces of the United States and Nigeria had killed a leader of the Daesh group based in the violence-stricken African country.
“Tonight, upon my instructions, the brave American forces and the Nigerian armed forces carried out a meticulously planned and highly complex mission to eliminate from the battlefield the world’s most active terrorist,” declared the American president on his Truth Social network.
“Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, number two of ISIS globally, thought he could hide in Africa, but he was unaware that we had sources that kept us informed of everything he was doing,” he added.
Later in the morning, the President of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, and the country’s army confirmed the death of a senior Daesh official during an operation with the United States.
Abu-Bilal al-Minuki had been placed under American sanctions in 2023 for his links to ISIS. Washington then claimed that this man, also known as Abu Bakr al-Mainuki, was born in 1982 and was originally from the state of Borno in northeastern Nigeria.
“With his elimination, the operational capabilities of ISIS worldwide are significantly reduced,” assured Donald Trump.
Northern Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, faces a double insecurity: on one hand, the violence of jihadist groups, and on the other hand, that of criminal gangs locally called “bandits,” who frequently carry out attacks on villages and mass kidnappings for ransom.
The increase in deadly attacks and mass kidnappings in recent months has caught the attention of the United States. President Donald Trump claims that Christians in Nigeria are “persecuted” and victims of a “genocide” perpetrated by “terrorists,” a claim that Abuja and the majority of experts strongly deny, as the violence generally affects Christians and Muslims indiscriminately.
The American army, in coordination with Nigerian authorities, carried out strikes on Christmas Day in the state of Sokoto targeting, according to Washington, Daesh jihadists. Since then, military cooperation between the two countries has strengthened.
