ABUJA: The Defence Headquarters says Nigerian troops, working alongside the United States Africa Command, have killed more than 20 fighters of the Islamic State West Africa Province in a new round of coordinated air strikes in northeastern Nigeria.
According to the military, the operation was carried out around Metele after intelligence reports indicated the movement and gathering of terrorist elements in the area.
In a statement issued on Monday, the Director of Defence Information, Samaila Uba, said the strikes were part of ongoing efforts to dismantle terrorist networks and prevent insurgents from regrouping in the region.
The military explained that the operation targeted suspected ISWAP positions after surveillance detected a convergence of fighters.
It added that the coordinated air strikes successfully neutralised more than 20 militants.
The Defence Headquarters said the offensive forms part of a broader campaign to remove insurgents from the battlefield and deny them safe havens across the country, particularly in the North-East, which has remained the epicentre of insurgency for more than a decade.
Major General Uba said the Armed Forces of Nigeria would continue to defend the country’s sovereignty and pursue armed groups threatening national security.
The development comes shortly after both Donald Trump and Bola Tinubu announced the killing of ISWAP commander Al-Minuki during an earlier joint counterterrorism mission involving Nigerian and US forces.
Trump had described Al-Minuki as one of the most active global terrorist figures, claiming he ranked among the top leadership of ISIS and had attempted to evade capture by relocating operations to Africa.
The latest operation highlights continued military cooperation between Nigeria and the United States in the campaign against insurgency in the Lake Chad and North-East region, where ISWAP remains one of the deadliest extremist groups.
