US President Joe Biden announced Thursday that the leader of the self-styled Islamic State (IS) was killed in a US special forces operation in northwestern Syria.
“Thanks to the skill and bravery of our armed forces, we have removed Abu Ibrahim al- Hashimi al- Qurayshi from the battlefield ,” it said in a statement.
A senior US official told the media that al Qurayshi, when cornered, detonated a bomb that killed him and members of his family.
Syrian emergency services said 13 people, including six children , were killed in the rebel-held town of Atmeh.
All Americans involved in the operation returned safely, Biden said.
“Thanks to the bravery of our troops, this horrible terrorist leader is no more,” he said in a later statement from the White House.
“This operation is a testament to the reach and ability of the United States to take down terrorist threats no matter where they try to hide anywhere in the world,” he added.
According to reports, several US helicopters landed in the area, which is in Idlib province in the north of the country and is close to the border with Turkey, around midnight on Thursday local time (22:00 GMT). .
Gordon Corera, the BBC’s security analyst, explained that while the Islamic State “no longer controls large swaths of Iraq and Syria as it did at the height of its power”, it posed a threat.
But there have been concerns in recent months from counterterrorism officials that the group was trying to reconstitute itself in Iraq and Syria and renew its power.
“That was seen in ambushes and attacks, particularly in a major attempted mass prison break in northeast Syria last month, as well as in a new propaganda campaign. So Washington will hope al- Qurayshi ‘s death will stop any resurgence .”
Intense battle
Local sources said the troops faced heavy resistance on the ground and were attacked by heavy anti-aircraft guns mounted on vehicles.
Gunshots and shelling were heard for two hours.
President Biden, Vice President Harris and members of the President’s national security team observe the counterterrorism operation responsible for removing from the battlefield Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi — the leader of ISIS. pic.twitter.com/uhK75WeUme
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 3, 2022
A correspondent for the AFP news agency who visited a two-story house apparently targeted in the raid said there were marks of an intense battle: blood-spattered walls, broken window frames, charred ceilings and a partially collapsed concrete roof.
The White Helmets, also known as the Syrian Civil Defence, said in a statement that their rescuers arrived at the building at 03:15 and recovered the bodies of 13 people , including six children and four women.
They also found an injured girl whose relatives died in the operation, according to the organization. She was taken to hospital along with a man who was injured when he approached the building during the clashes to see what was happening.
This is believed to have been the largest US special forces operation in northwestern Syria since al Qurayshi’s predecessor, Abu Ibrahim al Hashimi al Qurayshi, was killed in another operation some 16 km away from Atmeh in October 2019.
“At the beginning of the operation, the terrorist target exploded into a bomb that killed him and members of his own family, including women and children,” a senior US administration official told Reuters.
“While we are still evaluating the results of this operation, this appears to be the same cowardly terrorist tactic that we saw in the 2019 operation that took out al-Baghdadi,” he added.
Northwestern Syria is a stronghold of Turkish-backed jihadist groups and rebel factions that are fierce rivals to Islamic State.