Forces from the U.S. Central Command carried out a helicopter raid in Syria this past Sunday in which they were able to kill two officials of the Islamic State (ISIS).
The raid resulted in the ending of the lives of a still unnamed official along with “Anas, an ISIS Syria Province Official who was involved in the group’s deadly plotting and facilitation operations in eastern Syria,” as explained in a press release made public by Central Command.
News of the raid came in the wake of an aggressive operational agenda in the surrounding area to combat recent attempts regarding ISIS insurgence.
“ISIS continues to represent a threat to the security and stability of the region. This operation reaffirms CENTCOM’s steadfast commitment to ensuring the group’s enduring defeat,” explained one Central Command spokesperson, Joe Buccino. “The death of these ISIS officials will disrupt the terrorist organization’s ability to further plot and carry out destabilizing attacks in the Middle East.”
American military personnel had planned the details of the mission for multiple weeks, with weather patterns in the area resulting in it being delayed, as reported by the New York Times. Once the area’s weather cleared up, U.S. forces struck the area with a pair of helicopters in an effort to capture Anas. In the raid and its ensuing firefight, he was shot and killed along with the still unnamed second ISIS official.
The operation is just the most recent of its kind carried out by the forces of U.S. Central Command in the Middle Eastern nation against the Islamic State. The terror group has been mostly deconstructed, yet still managed to maintain a small fighting force in Syria.
This past October, the U.S. carried out two other massive strikes against ISIS that resulted in the deaths of three senior heads of ISIS. One of the attacks resulted in the death of Wahid al-Shammri, an Islamic State official who the U.S. military claimed was key to the smuggling of both fighters and weapons, as reported by Reuters.
This past July, U.S. Central Command forces carried out a strike just outside Jindayris which resulted in the deaths of two senior ISIS officials.
“Maher al-Agal, one of the top five ISIS leaders and the leader of ISIS in Syria, was killed in the strike,” expressed U.S. Central Command Public Affairs. “A senior ISIS official closely associated with Maher was seriously injured during the strike. Extensive planning went into this operation to ensure its successful execution. An initial review indicates there were no civilian casualties.”
Back in February, President Joe Biden made public that U.S. military forces had finally killed the Main leader of ISIS in Syria.
“Last night at my direction, U.S. military forces in the northwest (sic) Syria successfully undertook a counterterrorism operation to protect the American people and our Allies, and make the world a safer place,” exclaimed President Joe Biden in his release.
“Thanks to the skill and bravery of our Armed Forces, we have taken off the battlefield Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi—the leader of ISIS. All Americans have returned safely from the operation,” he concluded.
