US President Donald Trump announced that American forces, along with the Nigerian armed forces, had eliminated Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, the second-in-command of ISIS globally, in Nigeria.
In his Truth Social post, Trump wrote, “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.”
Trump welcomed the killing of Al-Minuki, stating that he would “no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans.”
Trump further added, “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. Thank you to the Government of Nigeria for your partnership on this operation. GOD BLESS AMERICA!”
Who was ISIS No.2 Abu-Bilal al-Minuki?
Abu-Bilal al-Minuki was an alleged senior ISIS operative who reportedly served as the terror group’s global second-in-command. He was also said to be known by the name Abu Bakr ibn Muhammad ibn Ali al-Mainuki.
According to a report by the Counter Extremism Project, Al-Mainuki primarily operated in Africa’s Sahel region, which stretches across 12 countries. The Sahel is a semi-arid transitional belt extending nearly 5,900 kilometres from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, separating the Sahara Desert in the north from the Sudanian savannas in the south.
The core Sahel region includes Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Sudan, while its broader extension also covers Gambia, Guinea, Cameroon and Eritrea.
The report further said that Al-Minuki served as a senior commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) and oversaw operations for the Lake Chad division under ISIS’s General Directorate of Provinces (GDP). He was responsible for global operations, logistics, planning, and a significant portion of financing.
Owing to his key role in directing international funding and operational guidance to terrorist cells, the US State Department officially designated him a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) in June 2023.
