The United States has confirmed that American and Nigerian forces carried out a joint counterterrorism operation that led to the elimination of Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, described as a senior ISIS commander operating in Africa.
In a statement shared on X, U.S. President Donald Trump said the mission was “meticulously planned” and executed alongside the Nigerian Armed Forces. He said intelligence gathering played a major role in tracking the ISIS figure.
Neither U.S. nor Nigerian authorities disclosed the exact location of the operation, but security sources linked the mission to extremist activities around the Lake Chad Basin region.
Security analyst Zagazola Makama said the operation could weaken ISIS-linked networks in West Africa. However, he noted that long-term success against insurgency would still depend on continued intelligence sharing, regional cooperation and stabilisation efforts.
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