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Nigerian troops in 2024. Alamy Stock Photo
Nigeria
Trump says IS second-in-command killed in US-Nigerian mission
The US president said the mission eliminated Abu Bakr al-Mainuki, the group’s second-in-command globally.
US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump has said that US and Nigerian forces have killed a senior leader of Islamic State.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said that Abu Bakr al-Mainuki was second-in-command of IS globally.
He added that Al-Mainuki “thought he could hide in Africa, but little did he know we had sources who kept us informed on what he was doing”.
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 16, 2026
Al-Mainuki was viewed as the key figure in the organising and financing of IS, and according to an official, has been plotting attacks against the US and its interests.
Nigerian president Bola Tinubu confirmed the operation and said that Al-Mainuki was killed alongside “several of his lieutenants, during a strike on his compound in the Lake Chad Basin”.
Trump thanked Nigerian government for its “partnership” on the operation.
Al-Mainuki was categorised as a “specially designated global terrorist” in 2023 by the Biden administration in 2023.
“He will no longer terrorise the people of Africa, or help plan operations to target Americans,” Trump said. “With his removal, ISIS’s global operation is greatly diminished.”
In February, the US sent troops to Nigeria to help advise its military, and deployed drones there in March.
Trump has said previously that Christians are being targeted by Islamist militants in the northwest of the country.
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