Residents displaced by attacks from the Islamic extremist group Boko Haram in Nigeria [AP=Yonhap News Agency file photo]

U.S. and Nigerian forces conducted airstrikes against the Islamic State (IS) extremist group in northeast Nigeria on March 17 (local time), the U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) announced on March 18.

According to AFP and Reuters, AFRICOM stated in a release on the same day that "there were no casualties among U.S. and Nigerian forces, and we are assessing the damage to IS," confirming the airstrikes.

The airstrikes came two days after U.S. and Nigerian forces killed a high-ranking IS commander, Abu Bilal al-Minuiki, in a joint operation.

Earlier, on the night of March 15, the two militaries conducted airstrikes in Borno State, northwestern Nigeria, eliminating al-Minuiki, according to U.S. President Donald Trump and Nigerian President Bola Tinubu. President Trump described al-Minuiki as the de facto second-in-command of IS globally, stating, "His removal has greatly reduced IS's global operations."

While President Trump had previously criticized Nigeria for failing to protect its Christian citizens from extremist Islamist groups, he expressed gratitude to the Nigerian government regarding this operation.

Since 2009, Nigeria has seen attacks by indigenous Islamic extremist groups such as Boko Haram and its affiliates, Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), and IS Sahel (also known as Ragura wa), targeting government forces and civilians. These attacks have resulted in over 40,000 deaths and approximately 2 million displaced persons.

At the request of the Nigerian government, the U.S. military conducted airstrikes against IS in northwestern Nigeria on December 25 of last year and has since been strengthening cooperation by deploying counter-terrorism support personnel and drones.