Joint US-Syria operation kills IS leader in northern Syria

US Central Command (CENTCOM) forces killed a senior Islamic state group leader and his two sons in northern Syria, the US military said in a post on X on Friday.

It was a joint operation with forces from the Syrian government, for which Washington has stepped up support to help the war-torn country rebuild and unite after 14 years of civil war, despite ongoing sectarian violence.

“Early this morning in al-Bab, Aleppo Governate, Syria, CENTCOM Forces conducted a raid resulting in the death of senior ISIS Leader, Dhiya’ Zawba Muslih al-Hardani, and his two adult ISIS-affiliated sons, Abdallah Dhiya al-Hardani and Abd al-Rahman Dhiya Zawba al-Hardani,” CENTCOM wrote on X.

“These ISIS individuals posed a threat to US and Coalition Forces, as well as the new Syrian Government. Three women and three children were also on the target and were unharmed,” it added.

It was the first joint operation between the US-led forces and Damascus.

While the Syrian government has not commented on the operation, local sources in al-Bab reported the killing and arrest of a number of IS members during the operation.

“We will continue to relentlessly pursue ISIS terrorists wherever they are. ISIS terrorists are not safe where they sleep, where they operate, and where they hide,” said General Michael Erik Kurilla, US Central Command 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.”

Syrian journalist Muhammad al-Shamali told The New Arab’s sister site, Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, that forces from the Syrian defence and interior ministries sealed off streets and deployed drones as a US helicopter carried out a landing operation.

He added that the raid targeted a house where an IS spokesman — an Iraqi national — was believed to be, along with several of his associates, adding that the Iraqi IS member was detained.

Northeast Syria’s US-backed, Kurdish-led forces spearheaded the battle against IS, which once controlled large swathes of Syrian territory.

Despite its defeat in 2019, IS continues to operate cells in war-torn Syria and carry out attacks.

The leader of IS in Iraq and Syria – hence the ISIS acronym – was killed in Iraq earlier this year in an operation by members of the Iraqi national intelligence service along with US-led coalition forces.

Amid the chaos and ongoing violence targeting minority groups, there are concerns that IS could be making a resurgence now in Syria, torn apart by years of conflict and deeply fractured.