U.S. forces carried out an attack in northwestern Syria on Friday that resulted in the death of an al-Qaeda leader linked to an ISIS gunman who ambushed and killed Americans last month.
US Central Command announced on Sunday that the attack killed Bilal Hasan al-Jasim, who the military described as “an experienced terrorist leader.”
Al-Jasim planned attacks and was directly linked to the shooter an ISIS ambush in Palmyria, SyriaThe Central Command said this in a press release on December 13. That attack killed two U.S. service members and an American interpreter and wounded other U.S. and Syrian personnel, U.S. officials said.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said on X in December that U.S. partner forces killed the person who carried out the attack.
“The death of a terrorist operative in connection with the deaths of three Americans demonstrates our resolve in pursuing terrorists who attack our military forces,” Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM, said in a statement Saturday. “There is no safe place for those who carry out, plot or inspire attacks on American citizens and our warfighters. We will find you.”
President Donald Trump promised retribution after the December ambush, calling it “an ISIS attack on the US.” The Defense Ministry said the incident occurred during a fight against terrorism.
Last week the US continued large-scale attacks in Syria as part of an operation called Hawkeye Strike. During the operation, U.S. and partner forces struck more than 100 ISIS infrastructure and weapons site targets “with more than 200 precision munitions,” Central Command said. The The strikes started in December as US forces targeted ISIS strongholds in Syria.
U.S. and partner forces have captured more than 300 ISIS operatives and killed more than two dozen across Syria over the past year, “removing terrorists who posed a direct threat to the United States and regional security,” the press release said.
Islamic State, known as both IS and ISIS, has been labeled a “terrorist group” by the United Nations and several countries, including the United States.
#military #killed #Qaeda #leader #northwestern #Syria