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President Donald Trump personally ordered the Pentagon to prioritise the protection of Nigerian Christians targeted by ISIS, a mission that led to the killing of the terror group’s second-in-command and hundreds of its fighters, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has revealed.
Speaking during a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Wednesday, Hegseth said Trump had acted about a year ago after hearing about the plight of Christians in Nigeria.
“And I just want to note one more thing, to give you a sense of how committed this president is. Maybe a year ago, he heard the call of Nigerian Christians who were being targeted and killed by ISIS in Nigeria.
“He said, ‘Pete, I want the War Department to focus on ensuring that we do everything we can to protect those Christians,'” Hegseth said.
The Pentagon chief said the operation had received little media attention despite its significance.
“Partnerships like that could take time behind the scenes, but you never wavered on it. And we got the assets there over the last month. There hasn’t been much coverage of this; we killed ISIS number two in Nigeria, who is most responsible for killing Christians and trying to target the US homeland,” he said.
.@SECWAR spoke on the attacks against ISIS terrorists in Nigeria:
“Over the last month, we killed ISIS No. 2 in Nigeria, who was MOST RESPONSIBLE for killing Christians and targeting the U.S. homeland…
Because of the INTEL that we gathered, we have since KILLED HUNDREDS of… pic.twitter.com/P6LGOqsTXN
— DOW Rapid Response (@DOWResponse) May 27, 2026
“And have since, because of the intel we gathered, killed hundreds of ISIS members who were targeting and killing Christians in Nigeria, creating a whole new opportunity there.
“So there’s a lot of things that we do that the media pays attention to, and a lot of things that the president empowers the department to do on behalf of the American people, that he deserves great credit for.”
The revelation came days after the United States and Nigeria announced the killing of Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, described by US Africa Command as the Islamic State’s director of global operations. The Nigerian national was killed in a joint operation in the Lake Chad Basin on May 16.
Trump, introducing Hegseth during the Cabinet meeting, jested that the Pentagon chief “loves war.”
Reacting, Representative Riley M. Moore tweeted his appreciation for the president’s actions.
“Thank you, President Trump, for defending our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters in Nigeria who have faced unspeakable slaughter and martyrdom at the hands of radical Islamic terrorists,” Moore wrote on X.
“President Trump’s steadfast leadership paved the way to these successful strikes on ISIS, including the mission that killed Abu-Bilal al-Muniki, ISIS’ #2 globally. This strike sent a clear message to the world – those who target innocent Christians will be hunted down and brought to justice.”
“Never test @POTUS’s resolve,” he added.
Thank you, President Trump, for defending our persecuted Christian brothers and sisters in Nigeria who have faced unspeakable slaughter and martyrdom at the hands of radical Islamic terrorists.
President Trump’s steadfast leadership paved the way to these successful strikes on… https://t.co/k4p4foIH4W
— Rep. Riley M. Moore (@RepRileyMoore) May 27, 2026
