Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said U.S. forces have killed “hundreds” of Islamic State militants in Nigeria, crediting President Donald Trump’s directive to protect Christians in the country from Islamist violence. During a Cabinet meeting at the White House on Wednesday, Hegseth said Trump charged the military with taking steps to protect Nigerian Christians roughly a year ago after learning of their targeting by the Islamic State terror group. Building the partnerships necessary to carry out such a mission took time, the secretary said, but the president remained persistent, and the right assets were eventually put in place.
“And over the last month, and there hasn’t been much coverage of this, we killed ISIS No. 2 in Nigeria, who is most responsible for killing Christians and trying to target the U.S. homeland, 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,” he said. The most significant action came on May 16, when U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced that U.S. forces had conducted an operation against Islamic State (also known as ISIS or IS) elements in northeastern Nigeria. AFRICOM’s initial assessment found that Abu-Bilal al-Minuk, whom Hegseth identified as the group’s No. 2 commander and director of global operations, had been killed along with other senior Islamic State leaders. No U.S. service members were harmed. AFRICOM commander Air Force Gen. Dagvin Anderson said the operation was made possible through U.S.-Nigeria cooperation over recent months.
“Make no mistake, our two nations will relentlessly pursue and neutralize terrorist threats and are committed to protecting our people and interests,” Anderson said. Africa Command, in coordination with the Nigerian government, conducted additional strikes against Islamic State targets in Northeastern Nigeria on May 17 and 18.
The US Food and Drug Administration has cleared Roche and partner Eli Lilly’s blood test to help identify signs of Alzheimer’s disease in people age 55 and…
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Police in Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania, say an aggressive coyote has been shot and killed after attacking a dog. In a social media post Friday afternoon, Cheltenham police…
A fast-growing wildfire spread from the Sierra foothills toward the center of Reno early Sunday, as approximately 90,000 residents were urged to evacuate. The fire has been…
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Police are directing traffic and the Grand Prairie hazmat unit is on the scene after at least 10 railcars derailed in Mansfield on Thursday evening, officials said.…
The extreme heat in North Texas is straining electrical equipment and causing scattered power outages across several Dallas neighborhoods. More than a dozen residents in the Kessler…
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has asked Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George to step down and take immediate retirement, sources familiar with the decision told CBS News. One of the sources said Hegseth wants someone in the role who will implement President Trump and Hegseth’s vision for the Army. Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement that George “will be retiring from his position as the 41st Chief of Staff of the Army effective immediately. The Department of War is grateful for General George’s decades of service to our nation. We wish him well in his retirement.”
A senior Defense Department official told CBS News, “We are grateful for his service, but it was time for a leadership change in the Army.” George previously served as the senior military assistant to Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin from 2021 to 2022, during the Biden administration, after decades of service. A career infantry officer and West Point graduate, George first served in the first Gulf War and the more recent conflicts of Iraq and Afghanistan. The Army chief of staff typically serves a four-year term. George was nominated for the position by President Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate in 2023, meaning he would typically have held the position until 2027.
For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well. Psalm 139:13-14
California lawmakers are expected to pass a new law ending child marriage within the state. Currently, California is one of three states that allow children of any…
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Thunderstorms return to the Chicago area on Friday. Most of the morning remains dry, but by lunchtime, scattered showers and thunderstorms are expected to move into the…
At the request of the Alaska State Troopers, Alaska Air National Guardsmen of the 176th Wing rescued an injured hiker from steep terrain in the Hatcher Pass…
Dozens of animals are beginning new lives after being rescued from a Twin Cities home last month. Twenty-nine cats and a dog were seized from the home…
U.S. border agents found a collection of endangered reptiles when they noticed a pillowcase moving in a woman’s car after she was stopped at the border with…
The Food and Drug Administration upgraded a recall of frozen blueberries and mixed berries sold at Publix grocery stores across the U.S. to the highest health risk…
The WJZ First Alert Weather Team has declared Thursday as a First Alert Weather Day for the potential of a line of powerful storms across Maryland that…
Five kittens were rescued from a house fire after crews responded within minutes on Monday to a single family home on East 5th Avenue, according to the Spokane…
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Eighty-one dogs were rescued from horrific conditions at a home in Kansas City, Kansas, over the weekend. Dogs of all ages were found with their fur matted…
Nine young men are safe after getting lost and eventually being rescued while hiking in Kentucky’s Red River Gorge over the weekend. They had traveled from northwest…
You may think of flag football as something for boys, but a former NFL player hosted an all-girls clinic Sunday at Bishop Lynch High School in Dallas.…
A Hilton Head Island lifeguard saved a beach-goer’s dog Thursday morning. Lifeguard Otávio Cunha from Hilton Head’s Shore Beach Service swam 60 yards to rescue the K-9,…
A 7.7-magnitude earthquake that struck eastern Indonesia on Saturday killed at least 38 people, a disaster management official said, revising an earlier toll. A second, 6.4-magnitude quake…
The Colorado Cherry Company, a Colorado staple, offers pies so legendary that even bears want a taste. This week a young bear broke into the Colorado Cherry…
Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., sided with Secretary of War Pete Hegseth on lifting the suspension of the flight crew involved in a helicopter flyover at Kid Rock’s Nashville mansion over the weekend and said he didn’t want to see the pilots punished. “Thank you Kid Rock,” Hegseth posted on X Tuesday afternoon. “US Army pilots suspension lifted. No punishment. No investigation. Carry on, patriots.” The U.S. Army aircrew was previously suspended from flight duties pending an investigation into Saturday’s helicopter stunt.
FEDERAL JUDGE GRILLS DOJ LAWYERS OVER CENSURE OF DEMOCRATIC SENATOR MS NOW host Willie Geist asked Kelly, a veteran Navy pilot, to react to the move by Hegseth on Wednesday’s “Morning Joe.” “I’m not a Kid Rock fan. You know, I — at the same time, I mean, I don’t see why we would, you know, punish these guys,” Kelly said. “Some, you know, young pilots in — whether it’s an Apache or there were times, you know, I did stuff in airplanes that probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do.”
Lee County residents looking to add a four-legged member to the family can adopt one for free Saturday as part of the 2026 Clear the Shelters campaign. Lee County Domestic…
Italian divers have discovered the 2,100-year-old wreck of a Roman ship off Sicily, piled high with hundreds of well-preserved ancient clay jars, known as amphorae, which were likely used to…
According to NOAA, July was the hottest month ever recorded in the history of the U.S. Colorado experienced more than a dozen days over 90 degrees, and the hot temperatures…
Visitors to Zoo Atlanta’s Ford African Rain Forest in the next few weeks may be able to see the zoo’s newest little arrival. The zoo announced that Bam, one of…
Astronomers announced Wednesday they had discovered a new type of astronomical object called a “black hole star,” potentially solving a mystery involving strange red dots spotted in the early universe.…
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