Trump charges U.S. Department of War to go after ISIS terrorists killing Christians in Nigeria
Pete Hegseth, U.S. Secretary of War, said President Donald Trump has charged American forces to go after ISIS terrorists killing Christians in Nigeria.
Mr Hegseth disclosed this in a press conference at the White House on Wednesday alongside Mr Trump.
“Maybe a year ago, he heard the call of Nigerian Christians who were being targeted and killed by ISIS in Nigeria, and he said, ‘Pete, I want the War Department to focus on ensuring that we do everything we can to protect those Christians,’” Mr Hegseth said.
The U.S. Secretary of War said that, based on Mr Trump’s directive, the U.S. Army has mobilised resources and commenced operations in Nigeria, leading to the elimination of ISIS second-in-command Abu-Bilal Al-Minuki.
“And we got the assets there, and over the last month, and there hasn’t been much coverage of this, we killed ISIS number two in Nigeria, who’s most responsible for killing Christians and trying to target the U.S. homeland,” Mr Hegseth said.
Earlier in May, U.S. forces, in collaboration with the Nigerian Army, carried out airstrikes, killing Mr Al-Minuki, a wanted top ISIS commander, in Nigeria’s North-East region.
Mr Al-Minuki, 44, was a Nigerian born in Mainok, Benisheikh, Borno State, a region that has long been the epicentre of insurgency in the country. U.S. authorities designated Al-Minuki a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) on June 8, 2023.
The elimination of Mr Al-Minuki came five months after American forces bombarded terrorist cells in Sokoto State last December, killing several militants.
The campaign over an alleged Christian genocide in Nigeria triggered Mr Trump’s action, including his designation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern last year.
We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.
More from Peoples Gazette
Agriculture
FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology
The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices
Politics
Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku
“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”
World
Mamdani Threat: Trump says Netanyahu won’t be arrested in U.S.
Mr Trump, in a post on Truth Social on Monday, dismissed New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s threat to arrest the Israeli leader to face prosecution at the International Criminal Court in The
Politics
Gov Aiyedatiwa celebrates Akeredolu’s legacy on posthumous birthday
Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa has paid tribute to Rotimi Akeredolu on his 70th posthumous birthday.
Economy
Vehicle duty reduction helpful not transformative: Stakeholders
Transport stakeholders say the federal government’s reduction in vehicle import duties has provided modest relief but is yet to transform the transport sector.
Economy
U.S. 50% tariff violates trade agreement, threatens Canada’s sovereignty: Carney
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney condemned the U.S. 50 per cent trade tariff, saying it violates the free trade agreement between Canada, America, and Mexico.
Hot news Home top
Husband pays ‘hired killer’ $1,720 advance to murder his wife, mother-in-law
The aggrieved husband wanted his wife killed because she planned to file for divorce.
Anti-Corruption
Agricultural firm Scoular to pay over $10 million to resolve foreign bribery case
Scoular employees communicated about shipments and bribes. In total, Scoular authorised bribes of more than $400,000 and avoided fees and costs of more than $6.5 million.
