On Tuesday, May 19, the Nigerian military announced that joint counterterrorism operations conducted with U.S. forces in northeastern Nigeria had killed 175 Islamic State fighters and senior commanders.
Military spokesman Samaila Uba said the coordinated air and ground assaults began over the week-end and destroyed IS checkpoints, weapons depots, logistics bases, military equipment and financial networks. Among those killed was Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, identified as the Islamic State’s second-in-command globally. The military said he was heavily involved in terrorist financing, recruitment, logistics and planning attacks against civilians.
Other commanders killed included Abd-al Wahhab of the Islamic State West Africa Province, Abu Musa al-Mangawi and Abu al-Muthanna al-Muhajir, a senior media operative.
The operations were carried out under a recently established Nigeria-United States counterterrorism and intelligence-sharing partnership aimed at dismantling terrorist networks in the region.