NIGERIA - Nigeria and the United States say they have killed a senior Islamic State (IS) leader in a joint-operation. Abu-Bilal al-Minuki was described by US President Donald Trump as the "second in command of ISIS globally" and "the most active terrorist in the world".
IS has radically shifted in recent years, with around 90 percent of its attacks now taking place in sub-Saharan Africa. Its Nigeria-based branch is by far the most active. Nigerian President Bola Tinubu said the two countries had carried out a "daring joint operation that dealt a heavy blow" to IS. Al‑Minuki was declared a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by Washington in 2023. He was killed along with "several of his lieutenants" during a strike on his compound in the Lake Chad Basin, a huge region of waterways and swampland shared by Nigeria, Chad, Niger and Cameroon. A military spokesman said intelligence had established Minuki had established a fortified base in the area - in Metele, Borno state. The Lake Chad basin has long been a stronghold for Boko Haram and its rival faction, Islamic State West Africa Province. (BBC)
