Trump Says US, Nigerian Armed Forces Kill 2nd-in-Command of ISIS

U.S. President Donald Trump said on May 15 that U.S. and Nigerian armed forces had killed the second-in-command of the ISIS terrorist group globally.

In a Truth Social post, Trump said the ISIS leader killed in the operation was identified as Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, who he said was attempting to hide in Africa.

“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,” he wrote.

Trump said the military received information from sources about the ISIS leader’s whereabouts in Africa. He also thanked the Nigerian government for its partnership in the operation.

“He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans,” the U.S. president said. “With his removal, ISIS’s global operation is greatly diminished.”

U.S. Africa Command shared a video of the operation on May 16.

“Last night’s operation targeted a significant presence of ISIS fighters in Northeastern Nigeria eliminating multiple high value individuals including Abu-Bilal al-Minuki,” U.S. Africa Command wrote in a post on X.

Trump said in a November 2025 Truth Social post that Christianity in Nigeria faced “an existential threat” because of terrorist attacks. In response, Nigerian President Bola Tinubu said his country is willing to work with the U.S. government and emphasized Nigeria’s stance against religious persecution.

In the following month, Trump said he directed a “powerful and deadly strike” against ISIS targets in northwest Nigeria, who he said had been killing Christians “at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries.” A Pentagon spokesperson said the strikes were approved by the Nigerian government.

“I have previously warned these Terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was,” the president wrote in a Truth Social post.

The United States deployed about 100 troops to Nigeria in February. Nigeria’s defense ministry said the deployment was made at the request of the Nigerian government to help train its military.

Maj. Gen. Samaila Uba, spokesperson for Nigeria’s Defense Headquarters, said the U.S. troops will only serve in “an advisory and training capacity” and will not take part in combat operations in Nigeria.

The Trump administration has also designated Nigeria a country of particular concern under the International Religious Freedom Act, which opens the country up to sanctions. The State Department said in December 2025 that it was restricting visas for Nigerians involved in the “mass killing and violence” against Christians.

Nigerian officials have rejected allegations of widespread Christian persecution, saying that the Boko Haram and ISIS West Africa terrorist groups target people of all faiths.

According to Pew Research, Nigeria is one of seven countries in the world with “very high” levels of social hostilities involving religion, led by terrorist groups such as Boko Haram and ISIS.

Nigeria is the most populous African country, with about 214 million people and large Christian and Muslim populations.

Catherine Yang contributed to this report.