Olushola Omogbehin
Nigerian president, Bola Tinubu, has confirmed the killing of a senior Islamic State leader, Abu-Bilal Al-Manuki, who is also called Abu-Mainok, in an operation jointly carried out by Nigeria and United States forces in the Lake Chad Basin.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by the president on Saturday where he said the operation marked a significant example of effective collaboration in the fight against terrorism between Nigeria and Nigeria.
According to the president, Nigerian troops that are working with the US Armed Forces, carried out a daring joint operation that dealt a heavy blow to the ranks of the Islamic State.
Tinubu said: “early assessments confirm the elimination of the wanted IS senior leader, Abu-Bilal Al-Manuki, also known as Abu-Mainok, along with several of his lieutenants, during a strike on his compound in the Lake Chad Basin.”
Meanwhile, United States President Donald Trump who had earlier confirmed the operation, praised the Nigerian government for this heroic exploit.
He described Al-Minuki as the most active terrorist in the world.
“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,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday.
Describing the slain military leader as the second in command of ISIS globally, Trump said he had believed he could hide in Africa.
“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 said.
Trump added that US Al-Minuki, who was placed under American sanctions in 2023 over his ties to the Islamic State group, would “no longer terrorize the people of Africa.
