President Donald Trump announced Saturday that American and Nigerian forces had conducted a joint counterterrorism operation in northeastern Nigeria that resulted in the death of Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, identified as the second-in-command of ISIS globally and the group’s director of global operations.
The operation took place in the Lake Chad Basin, a region spanning Nigeria, Chad, Niger, and Cameroon where ISIS-linked groups including the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) maintain activity.
Al-Minuki, also known as Abu-Mainok or Abu Bilal al-Manuki, was a Nigeria-born commander from Borno State. He had risen through the ranks of ISWAP before assuming a senior role in the broader ISIS network. U.S. officials described him as providing strategic guidance on media and financial operations, as well as the development and manufacturing of weapons, explosives, and drones.
He was designated a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the United States in 2023 and was linked to planning attacks and hostage-taking incidents, including the 2018 Dapchi schoolgirls kidnapping. Nigerian authorities determined that he oversaw all ISIS-linked operations across the Sahel and West Africa, according to a report from Reuters.
The mission involved troops from Nigeria’s Joint Task Force (North East) Operation HADIN KAI in close coordination with U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM).
Forces conducted a strike on al-Minuki’s compound, located on small islands in the Lake Chad area. Early assessments confirmed that al-Minuki was killed alongside several of his lieutenants and multiple other combatants, while no U.S. service members were injured during the operation.
“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,” President Trump announced in a Truth Social post.
Trump added that al-Minuki “will no longer terrorize the people of Africa or help plan operations to target Americans” and thanked the Nigerian government for its partnership.
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu confirmed the outcome in an official statement, noting the elimination of al-Minuki and several lieutenants in the strike on the Lake Chad Basin compound. He described the mission as a “significant example of effective collaboration in the fight against terrorism” and credited a strengthened U.S.-Nigeria intelligence partnership.
In the wider Sahel and East Africa, U.S. Africa Command maintains ongoing counterterrorism operations in coordination with partner nations. These include recent airstrikes against ISIS-Somalia and al-Shabaab targets in Somalia, conducted in April and May 2026 with the Federal Government of Somalia.
Operations have also continued against ISIS targets in the Lake Chad region.
