United States Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, has said President Donald Trump directed the Pentagon to prioritise the protection of Christians in Nigeria targeted by ISIS-linked groups.

Speaking during a press conference at the White House on Wednesday, Hegseth said Trump gave the directive about a year ago after learning about attacks on Christians in Nigeria.

“Maybe a year ago, he heard the call of Nigerian Christians who were being targeted and killed by ISIS in Nigeria, and he said, ‘Pete, I want the War Department to focus on ensuring that we do everything we can to protect those Christians,’” Hegseth said.

According to him, the operation involved behind-the-scenes coordination and deployment of military assets.

“And we got the assets there, and over the last month, and there hasn’t been much coverage of this, we killed ISIS number two in Nigeria, who’s most responsible for killing Christians and trying to target the U.S. homeland,” he stated.

According to Hegseth, intelligence gathered during the operation contributed to the killing of Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, identified as ISIS’s second-in-command, during a joint operation involving U.S. and Nigerian forces in the Lake Chad Basin.

Abu-Bilal al-Minuki was killed in a coordinated US-Nigeria military operation in northeast Nigeria earlier this month.

Hegseth said the operation also led to the deaths of “hundreds” of ISIS fighters linked to attacks on Christians in Nigeria and threats against the United States.

“And have since, because of the intel we gathered, killed hundreds of ISIS members who were targeting and killing Christians in Nigeria,” he added.

The U.S. defence chief said the operation reflected the Trump administration’s commitment to counterterrorism efforts and protecting vulnerable communities.

“So there are a lot of things 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,” Hegseth said.