US, Nigerian forces kill senior ISIS leader in Nigeria
U.S. and Nigerian forces killed a senior Islamic State leader and several other militants in a joint operation in northeastern Nigeria. U.S. officials described the mission as a major blow to the extremist group’s global network.
U.S. Africa Command on Saturday said the operation was carried out “at the direction of the President of the United States and the Secretary of War” and in coordination with the Nigerian government.
The command said its initial assessment found that Abu-Bilal al-Minuki was among those killed. AFRICOM said no American service members were injured in the operation.
“This operation underscores the exceptional value of the U.S.-Nigeria partnership,” AFRICOM commander Gen. Dagvin Anderson said in a statement. “Our two nations will relentlessly pursue and neutralize terrorist threats and are committed to protecting our people and interests.”
According to AFRICOM, al-Minuki helped oversee ISIS media and financial operations and played a central role in the development of weapons, explosives and drones used by the extremist network. The command described him as “the most active terrorist in the world” and said he had extensive involvement in planning attacks and directing hostage-taking operations.
President Donald Trump praised the mission in a post on Truth Social Friday, calling it a “meticulously planned and very complex mission” carried out by “brave American forces and the Armed Forces of Nigeria.”
“He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans,” Trump wrote, adding that ISIS’ global operations had been “greatly diminished” by al-Minuki’s death.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in a post on X that the operation followed months of intelligence gathering after Trump directed the Pentagon in late 2025 to prepare actions against militants targeting Christians in Nigeria.
“For months, we hunted this top ISIS leader in Nigeria who was killing Christians, and we killed him — and his entire posse,” Hegseth wrote.
A statement posted by U.S. Africa Command on X said the mission targeted “a significant presence of ISIS fighters in Northeastern Nigeria,” resulting in the deaths of “multiple high value individuals including Abu-Bilal al-Minuki.”
The operation marks an increase in U.S. involvement against ISIS-linked groups operating in West Africa. Nigeria has faced years of attacks, kidnappings and bombings by militant groups concentrated largely in the country’s north and northeast.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
