The deputy assistant to US President Donald Trump and senior director for counterterrorism at the National Security Council, Sebastian Gorka, says US troops killed 199 jihadists during a single military operation in Nigeria.
Gorka made the disclosure during an interview with Marissa Streit, chief executive officer of PragerU, which aired on June 24.
Speaking on America’s counterterrorism operations, Gorka pointed to what he described as the country’s continued success in confronting Islamist extremist groups.
“I can talk about this because it has been declassified. The president is not nation-building; he’s not going around the world like some lunatic neocon saying, ‘we will turn the world into America,’” he said.
“But if you’re threatening Americans, or if you’re targeting Christians because they’re Christians, he has a very strong message to send to you, whether it was his Christmas Day strike or, three weeks ago, what we did in Nigeria.
“Three weeks ago in Nigeria, and I watched it live from the situation room. It was like being in a Tom Clancy movie, but it’s better because it’s real. I watched our operatives kill 199 jihadists in one operation.
“Now, why is this important? That is the biggest neutralisation enemy killed in action since September the 11th. One hundred and ninety-nine jihadists who will not harm Americans again.”
It remains unclear whether Gorka was referring to the joint US-Nigeria operation on May 15 that killed Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, the second-in-command of ISIS in the Lake Chad Basin, or the May 30 operation that reportedly eliminated 21 ISWAP fighters.
President Bola Tinubu had earlier stated that “several” ISIS lieutenants were killed alongside Al-Minuki during the May 15 raid.
US officials also disclosed that electronic devices recovered during the operation, including mobile phones and laptops, are being analysed for intelligence on the recruitment, operations, and financing of ISIS-linked groups in Africa and beyond.
Gorka added that the electronic materials seized during the raid represented the largest intelligence haul since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
“From that raid we brought home, we needed an extra plane to bring home all the electronic material that we captured in those camps. The haul was three times bigger than any enemy electronics haul since 9/11,” he said.
“That is priceless, because now our experts are taking apart all of that information, looking at how ISIS is communicating with each other. We are so back in the game of counterterrorism.”
When asked why much of the counterterrorism battle has shifted to Africa, Gorka said the continent’s growing Christian population has increasingly made it a target for jihadist groups.
He added that ISIS has worsened insecurity across the Sahel by exploiting weak governance systems and existing conflicts to spread its extremist ideology.
Gorka said the US remains committed to strengthening security partnerships with African nations as part of efforts to eliminate terrorist threats globally.