It was through a late-night post on his Truth Social network that Donald Trump first announced, late Friday night, the death of the “number two” of the Islamic State (IS) group, Abou Bilal Al-Minuki. “Tonight, on my instructions, the brave American forces and Nigerian armed forces carried out a meticulously planned and very complex mission to eliminate the most active terrorist in the world from the battlefield,” wrote the American president in his post, as reported by USA Today. “Abou Bilal Al-Minuki, the number two of IS on a global scale, thought he could hide in Africa, but he did not know that we had sources that kept us informed of everything he was doing,” he added. On Saturday, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu confirmed the operation, praising it as “a significant example of effective collaboration in the fight against terrorism,” which dealt “a severe blow to the ranks of the Islamic State.” Described by Nigerian defense forces as “one of the most active terrorists in the world and a key figure in IS global operations,” Al-Minuki oversaw the production of weapons, explosives, drone development, as well as media operations related to the Islamic State in multiple regions, as detailed by Punch.
According to intelligence services, “he had recently been promoted to head the General Directorate of IS provinces, making him the second in command of the global terrorist network,” added the Nigerian publication. The BBC highlighted that the Islamic State has “radically evolved in recent years, with about 90% of its attacks now taking place in sub-Saharan Africa,” with its Nigerian branch being the most active.
Violent clashes: Al-Minuki, according to Nigerian authorities, “had long-standing operational links with IS in West Africa and was linked to the abduction of Dapchi schoolgirls [in Nigeria’s Yobe state] in 2018.” “Before pledging allegiance to the Islamic State in 2015, he was a prominent commander within Boko Haram, subsequently facilitating the movement of fighters to Libya in support of IS operations in North Africa,” noted Punch. US officials, speaking anonymously to the New York Times, revealed that Al-Minuki “was killed during a heliborne assault carried out by about twenty commandos of Nigerian and American special forces while he was with several of his lieutenants in his compound in the Lake Chad basin.”
“The army was seeking to capture Mr. Al-Minuki alive, but when it became apparent that he would not surrender, the Americans took him out with an airstrike,” the American daily reported. The Wall Street Journal pointed out that “this coordinated operation reflects a significant warming of relations between the United States and Nigeria since last year, when Trump criticized the Nigerian government’s inaction against what he described as ‘genocide’ of Christians by Muslim militants.”
Regarding internal frictions: Dennis Amachree, a former senior Nigerian official, confirmed to Al-Jazeera that the elimination of Al-Minuki “will create a huge void in the leadership and financing of IS, as many senior officials were decimated along with him.” “Internal frictions can be expected regarding the succession,” he predicted. “Since he managed global financial flows and external operations, the group’s ability to transfer funds across borders, acquire cutting-edge drone technology, and coordinate with administrative cells outside West Africa will immediately face obstacles.”
