Trump says ISIS No. 2 Abu-Bilal al-Minuki killed in Nigeria

WASHINGTON – Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, second in command of ISIS globally, has been eliminated in an operation conducted by US and Nigerian forces, US President Donald Trump said on May 15.

“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,” Mr Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

He also thanked the Nigerian government for its partnership in the operation.

Nigeria earlier came under scrutiny from Mr Trump, who said Christians there were being persecuted, which the African nation’s government denies.

Nigeria is battling militancy, including regional offshoots of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), as well as Islamist rival Boko Haram. It has also carried out strikes and operations against non-ideological violent gangs known as “bandits”.

Since late 2025, the Nigerian government has been under pressure from the United States, which has accused it of not doing enough to combat the Islamist militant threat.

On Dec 25, 2025, the US, in collaboration with Nigerian authorities, carried out air strikes at the north-western Sokoto state targeting fighters from the Islamic State in the Sahel (ISSP), usually active in neighbouring Niger.

Washington has since deployed hundreds of troops to Nigeria to support and train Nigerian forces.

Mr Trump did not provide details on the form of attack that killed al-Minuki, whether US forces carried out air strikes or where the militant leader was targeted.

The US State Department, when announcing al-Minuki’s designation on the American government list of “global terrorists” in 2023, called him a Sahel-based ISIS senior leader and part of its general directorate of provinces, the group’s administrative body that provides “operational guidance and funding around the world.” REUTERS, AFP