Nigeria Says ISIS Deputy Leader Killed in Hideout Raid

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu confirmed today (*Shabbat*) a statement made last night by U.S. President Donald Trump regarding the killing of Abu Bilal Abu-Minuki, the number two figure in ISIS worldwide. Tinubu said the killing was carried out as part of a joint operation between Nigerian and American forces.

Trump announced Abu-Minuki’s killing last night in a post on his social media platform Truth Social: "At my direction, brave American forces, and the armed forces of Nigeria, flawlessly carried out a carefully planned and very complex mission to eliminate the world’s most active terrorist. The deputy commander of ISIS worldwide thought he could hide in Africa, but he did not know that we had sources who kept us informed of his actions. He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, and he will not help plan operations against Americans."

Reuters reported that the ISIS deputy leader had been hiding near the border area of Nigeria, Chad, Niger, and Cameroon. He was killed in a hideout compound in the region known as "Lake Chad." According to the report, since the group’s decline in Syria and Iraq, about 90% of ISIS attacks now take place in Africa, south of the Sahara.

The Nigerian military said the operation began shortly after midnight on Saturday, following months of intelligence gathering and reconnaissance. It said there were zero casualties among the Nigerian and American forces.