American forces killed an ISIS leader in a raid in the Aleppo province of Syria on Friday, the US military’s Central Command said.
The raid resulted “in the death of senior ISIS leader Dhiya Zawba Muslih Al Hardani, and his two adult ISIS-affiliated sons”, Centcom said.
“These ISIS individuals posed a threat to US and Coalition Forces, as well as the new Syrian government,” it said. Three women and three children at the location of the raid were unharmed, Centcom added.
ISIS rose out of the chaos of the Syrian civil war to seize swathes of territory there and in neighbouring Iraq more than a decade ago.
The US has been engaged in military operations against the group since 2014, as part of a broader international coalition aimed at dismantling its territorial control and leadership.
While ISIS no longer holds significant territory, the group continues to operate sleeper cells and carry out attacks, particularly in eastern Syria.
US forces, working alongside local Kurdish-led partners, maintain a presence in Syria to prevent the group’s resurgence and to target its remaining leadership.
“ISIS terrorists are not safe where they sleep, where they operate and where they hide,” said Gen Michael Kurilla, US Centcom Commander.
“Alongside our partners and allies, US Central Command is committed to the enduring defeat of ISIS terrorists that threaten the region, our allies and our homeland,” he added.
President Trump signed an executive order in late June lifting the bulk of US sanctions on Syria. This rolled back decades of restrictions and offered economic relief to Damascus’s new government, which overthrew longtime ruler Bashar Al Assad.
