The U.S. Army, in partnership with the Nigerian government, carried out additional strikes against the Islamic State (ISIS) in northeastern Nigeria on Sunday, May 17, the U.S. Africa Command has announced. “Intelligence confirmed the targets were ISIS militants. Complete assessments are ongoing. No U.S. or Nigerian forces were harmed,” read a statement shared by the U.S. Africa Command on its website. Earlier on Saturday, U.S. and Nigerian forces conducted an operation that killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, described as the second-in-command of the Islamic State globally, in northeastern Nigeria, according to U.S. President Donald Trump and Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Following the latest strikes on Sunday, the U.S. Africa Command said that “the removal of these terrorists diminishes the group’s capacity to plan attacks that threaten the safety and security of the U.S. and our partners.” It added that the U.S. Africa Command remains committed to using specialised U.S. capabilities to support partners in defeating shared security threats.
