Trump: "U.S. and Nigerian Forces Eliminate IS Number Two Worldwide"

Elimination of Abu Bilal al-Minuki, IS Number Two

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on the 15th (local time) that the United States and Nigerian forces had eliminated the number two leader of the extremist militant group Islamic State (IS) through a joint military operation.

President Trump stated in a post on Truth Social that "Tonight, under my direction, brave American and Nigerian forces flawlessly carried out a meticulously planned and extremely complex operation to remove a terrorist who was actively operating around the world from the battlefield."

U.S. President Donald Trump. Photo by Yonhap News

President Trump said, "Abu Bilal al-Minuki, the number two figure in IS worldwide, may have thought he could hide in Africa, but he did not realize that we had informants tracking his every move."

He continued, "He will no longer be able to threaten the people of Africa with terror nor assist with operational planning that targets Americans," adding, "With his elimination, IS's global operations have been significantly diminished."

President Trump had previously suggested the possibility of military intervention, citing that Christians are being persecuted in Nigeria, a country where attacks by Islamic extremist militant groups occur frequently.

Accordingly, on December 25 last year, the U.S. military, under President Trump's orders, coordinated with Nigerian forces to carry out airstrikes on IS strongholds within Nigeria, even on Christmas Day.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.