Nigeria says its joint strikes with the US have killed 175 Islamic State fighters

LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) — A joint operation against Islamic State fighters by Nigeria and the United States has killed 175 of the fighters over the past few days, the Nigerian military said Tuesday.

Military spokesperson Samaila Uba said in a statement that the strikes also destroyed weapons, checkpoints and financial networks of the militants across the northeastern region of the country.

The gains against the militants followed the killing late last week of the group’s local chapter deputy, Abu Bakr al-Mainuki, in the first successful targeting of a senior militant in more than a decade of insurgency in the country.