Donald Trump says the US has killed second-in-command ISIS leader – Australian Broadcasting Corporation
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Topic:Unrest, Conflict and War
Sat 16 May 2026 at 1:51pm
President Donald Trump says a major ISIS leader has been killed. (AP: Matt Rourke)
Donald Trump says Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, the second in command of ISIS globally, has been eliminated by US and Nigerian forces.
Mr Trump said the leader was killed after sources found him in hiding in Africa, a statement later confirmed by Nigeria's president.
The Islamic State extremist group has not commented on the claim.
US President Donald Trump says American and Nigerian forces have killed the second-in-command leader of ISIS.
Mr Trump said Abu-Bilal al-Minuki was "eliminated" after sources found him in hiding in Africa, with Nigeria's president later confirming the operation had taken place at a compound in the Lake Chad Basin.
"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 in a post on social media.
"Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, second in command of ISIS globally, thought he could hide in Africa, but little did he know we had sources who kept us informed on what he was doing.
"He will no longer terrorize the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans."
Mr Trump's Truth Social post. (Supplied: Truth Social)
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu described the strike as "a significant example of effective collaboration in the fight against terrorism".
In a statement posted on X, Mr Tinubu said early assessments confirmed al-Minuki — also known as Abu-Mainok — had been killed, along with several of his lieutenants.
Mr Tinubu said Nigerian forces had worked closely with their US counterparts in what he called a daring joint operation that dealt a heavy blow to the ranks of ISIS, sometimes referred to as Islamic State.
The extremist group has not commented on the claim.
Al-Minuki, a Nigerian national, was designated as a "specially designated global terrorist" by the former Biden administration in 2023, according to the US Federal Register.
Nigeria had come under scrutiny from Mr Trump, who had said that Christians there were being persecuted, which the African nation's government denies.
The US forces were operating in a strictly non-combat role, Nigerian military officials said earlier this year.
The US had struck what it said were Islamist bases in north-western Nigeria on Christmas Day last year, following Mr Trump's accusations.
ABC/Reuters
Sat 16 May 2026 at 1:51pm
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