The Islamic State West Africa Province has confirmed the death of one of its senior figures, Abu-Bilal al-Mainuki, following a precision raid by United States Special Forces on the group’s enclave in the Lake Chad region of North-East Nigeria.
The confirmation came through a statement released on the group’s media channels, in which ISWAP described those killed during the operation — including members of its media unit — as martyrs, while acknowledging that its media headquarters was directly targeted and that all personnel present at the facility at the time of the strike were killed.
The development came approximately two weeks after initial reports of a coordinated U.S. special operations mission that struck an ISWAP media and command facility deep within the Lake Chad basin. According to available accounts, the operation involved a precision airborne assault supported by surveillance drones, intelligence assets, and attack aircraft, and was aimed at high-value Islamic State-linked operatives in the area.
In its statement, ISWAP also claimed that U.S. forces had tracked Al-Mainuki for several months using drone surveillance before launching what it described as a large-scale airborne assault involving heavy gunfire. At least three foreign ISIS-linked fighters were reported killed during the raid, alongside several women believed to have been associated with the insurgent camp.
Although ISWAP did not specify the total number of casualties it suffered, intelligence sources indicated that as many as 175 fighters may have been killed in the operation — a figure that, if accurate, would represent a devastating blow to the group’s command structure and media infrastructure in the Lake Chad axis.
The raid is regarded as part of broader counterterrorism efforts by the United States and its regional partners aimed at disrupting extremist networks and preventing the re-establishment of transnational Islamic State operations across West Africa.
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