WASHINGTON: The US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that its forces captured an official of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group during a helicopter raid in northern Syria on September 23. In a statement on Monday, the CENTCOM said: “Abu Halil al-Fad’ani, an IS Syria Operational and Facilitation official, was captured during the raid. Al-Fad’ani was assessed to have relationships throughout the IS network in the region.”
“The capture of IS officials like al-Fad’ani increases our ability to locate, target, and remove terrorist from the battlefield,” CENTCOM spokesperson Lt. Col. Troy Garlock was quoted as saying in the statement. “US CENTCOM remains committed to the enduring defeat of IS,” he added. No civilians were killed or injured during this operation, the statement noted. Last month, CENTCOM forces and coalition partners conducted eight operations in Syria, in which seven IS operatives were detained and an eighth was killed, CNN reported
In Iraq, 18 operatives were detained and six were killed throughout operations in August in Iraq. Another IS “attack facilitator”, Hudayfah al Yemeni, and two of his associates were captured in a helicopter raid in Syria in April.
Currently, the US has about 900 troops in Syria as part of the ongoing mission to defeat the terrorist group. (IANS)
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