US targets 'senior' IS jihadist in Syria's northeast: Centcom

US targets 'senior' IS jihadist in Syria's northeast: Centcom

Syria
Map locating Muluk Saray in Syria. Photo: STAFF / AFP
Source: AFP

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

American forces targeted a "senior" member of the jihadist Islamic State group Thursday in a pre-dawn raid on northeastern Syria, the US military's Central Command said.

The operation is the latest US effort to clamp down on IS jihadists who have been territorially defeated but still orchestrate attacks in Syria and neighbouring Iraq.

"Centcom forces conducted a raid in northeast Syria targeting a senior ISIS official," spokesman Colonel Joe Buccino said in an emailed statement to AFP, without elaborating.

Syria's state broadcaster had said a US airborne operation involving multiple helicopters left one person dead and saw several others captured in a government-controlled area of Syria's northeast, which is mostly dominated by Kurdish forces.

The targeted village, Muluk Saray, lies 17 kilometres (10 miles) south of the Kurdish-held city of Qamishli and is controlled by pro-regime militias, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Read also

Remaining hostages freed from Nigeria train attack

Thursday's raid is the first such airborne operation in government-held territory since the start of Syria's war in 2011, added the Britain-based war monitor.

PAY ATTENTION: Click “See First” under the “Following” tab to see YEN.com.gh News on your News Feed!

The person killed in the operation "had been a resident of the area for years", said the Observatory which relies on a wide network of sources in Syria.

At least two people were captured alive in the operation, including a Syrian and an Iraqi, the monitor said.

Little-known target

A resident of the village said three US helicopters carrying troops had landed in the operation.

US forces raided a house, killing one person and taking several others captive, the resident told AFP on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

"They used loudspeakers to call on residents to stay indoors" during the operation, the resident said.

Read also

Yemen's fate hangs in balance as truce collapses

The resident identified the victim as Abu Hayel, a little-known displaced person from Hassakeh province.

The United States leads a military coalition battling IS in Syria.

In July, the Pentagon said it killed Syria's top IS jihadist in a drone strike in the northern part of the country.

Centcom said he had been "one of the top five" IS leaders.

The July strike came five months after a nighttime US raid in the town of Atme, which led to the death of the overall Islamic State leader, Abu Ibrahim al-Qurashi.

US officials said Qurashi died when he detonated a bomb to avoid capture.

After losing their last territory following a military onslaught backed by the US-led coalition in March 2019, the remnants of IS in Syria mostly retreated into desert hideouts.

They have since used such hideouts to ambush Kurdish-led forces and Syrian government troops while continuing to mount attacks in Iraq.

New feature: Сheck out news that is picked for YOU ➡️ find “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

Source: AFP

Authors:
AFP avatar

AFP AFP text, photo, graphic, audio or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer or otherwise except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service, AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, videos, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP material. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP material.