Dec 11, 2022 - Politics & Policy

U.S. forces kill two ISIS officials in eastern Syria

Erin Doherty

US forces patrol the countryside of Rumaylan (Rmeilan) in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province near the border with Turkey, on December 4, 2022. — U.S. forces patrol the countryside of Rumaylan in Syria's northeastern Hasakeh province on Dec. 4. Photo: Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images

U.S. Central Command forces killed two ISIS officials, including a Syrian province official, in a helicopter raid on Sunday morning.

Driving the news: The raid, which took place in eastern Syria at 2:57am local time, killed ISIS Syria province official Anas, who was involved in plotting and running deadly terrorist attacks in the area, per a press release.

"Extensive planning" went into the military operation, CENTCOM said, and no civilians were killed or injured based on initial assessments.

The big picture: The U.S. has targeted a number of several senior ISIS officials, including in February, when a military raid killed Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi.

U.S. forces in October killed "an ISIS official known to facilitate the smuggling of weapons and fighters to support ISIS operations" in a helicopter raid in northeast Syria.

What they're saying: "ISIS continues to represent a threat to the security and stability of the region," Joe Buccino, a CENTCOM spokesperson, said in the statement.

"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."

Go deeper ... Scoop: CIA warns Turkey that strikes in Syria endanger U.S. troops

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U.S. forces kill two ISIS officials in eastern Syria

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