US President Donald Trump has announced that Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, described as the global second-in-command of ISIS, was killed during a joint operation involving American and Nigerian forces in Africa. According to Reuters, Trump made the announcement on Friday through a post on Truth Social, saying the mission was “meticulously planned” and “very complex.” He claimed intelligence sources had tracked al-Minuki’s movements before the operation was carried out. Trump described al-Minuki as “the most active terrorist in the world” and said his death would significantly weaken ISIS’ global operations. He also thanked the Nigerian government and the Armed Forces of Nigeria for their cooperation in the operation. The exact location and timing of the mission were not disclosed. However, reports said al-Minuki was a Nigerian national and had been designated a global terrorist by the United States in 2023 over his senior role within ISIS operations in Africa, particularly around the Sahel and Lake Chad regions. Reuters noted that the United States has increased military cooperation with Nigeria in recent months, including intelligence support, training operations and drone deployments linked to counterterrorism efforts in West Africa. Nigerian authorities have previously maintained that US troops in the country operate mainly in advisory and non-combat roles. As of Saturday morning, Nigerian authorities had not publicly released a separate official statement confirming details of the operation.