President Trump announced Friday night that US and Nigerian forces killed ISIS’s second in command in a “very complex mission.”
“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 wrote on Truth Social.
“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 continued. “He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans.
“With his removal, ISIS’s global operation is greatly diminished.”
Trump thanked the government of Nigeria for partnering with the US on the operation.
“GOD BLESS AMERICA!” the president’s post concluded.
Trump announced the operation just hours after returning to the White House following a three-day trip to Beijing.
Nigeria has been plagued by violence carried out by multiple armed militant groups, including Boko Haram and Islamic State of West Africa Province.
Last November, Trump warned that he would cut off US aid to Nigeria and go into the country “guns-a-blazing” if the government didn’t do more to stop Islamic extremists from killing Christians.
The president followed up with a series of airstrikes carried out by US forces on Christmas Day that killed “multiple ISIS terrorists,” according to US Africa Command.
In February, the Nigerian government said it invited a “contingent of United States technical and training personnel” to the African nation who wouldn’t engage in combat or have a direct operational role.
Around 200 US troops were deployed to Nigeria, a US official said at the time.
The Pentagon and US Africa Command did not immediately respond to The Post’s requests for comment.
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