WASHINGTON (BLOOMBERG, REUTERS) - Islamic State leader, Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Quraishi, was killed during a United States counter-terrorism operation in northwest Syria Wednesday night, President Joe Biden said in a statement.
“Last night at my direction, US military forces in northwest Syria successfully undertook a counter-terrorism operation to protect the American people and our allies, and make the world a safer place,” Biden said.
Quraishi detonated a bomb that killed himself and members of his family, including women and children, at the beginning of the operation, according to a senior US official.
Quraishi took over as leader of the terror organisation, also known as ISIS, after former leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in a US raid in 2019. Quraishi oversaw the group’s attacks on the Yazidi religious minority in Iraq.
Though the influence of the group waned as the US largely eliminated its territorial holdings in recent years, the group was never completely eradicated and has stepped up terror attacks in recent months.
"Thanks to the skill and bravery of our Armed Forces, we have taken off the battlefield Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Quraishi – the leader of ISIS. All Americans have returned safely from the operation," Mr Biden said in the statement, referring to the acronym by which the Sunni Islamist militant group is sometimes known.
The Pentagon had earlier said that US Special Operations forces successfully carried out a counter-terrorism mission in north-west Syria on Thursday, adding that there were no US casualties, but gave no further details.
Residents of the north-west Syrian town of Atmeh and rebels fighting the Syrian government earlier reported several civilian casualties in the two-hour operation, saying the raid was believed to have targeted a suspected al-Qaeda-affiliated militant.
Residents said the raid took place around midnight in a densely populated area near the border with Turkey, where tens of thousands of displaced Syrians live in makeshift camps or overcrowded housing.
There were no report of any militants being killed, but residents said they heard heavy gunfire during the operation, indicating resistance to the raid.
https://www.straitstimes.com/world/middle-east/isis-leader-killed-in-us-raid-in-syria-biden
