US commandos capture six ISIS terrorists in latest Syria raid
WASHINGTON – American forces have captured six ISIS operatives in a series of raids across northeast Syria since Sunday, according to US Central Command.
US commandos nabbed the terrorists in three separate helicopter raids over a 48-hour period, CENTCOM said in a statement Tuesday.
One of the six detained was an Islamic State-Syria senior official known as al-Zubaydi, who was involved in the planning and facilitation of ISIS attacks in Syria.
“Extensive planning went into these operations to ensure their successful execution,” the combatant command said in a statement. “Initial assessments indicate no civilians were killed or injured.”
The operation was the latest in a string of US raids in northeastern Syria this year — and the second this month alone.
The most recent helicopter raid, on Dec. 11, killed two ISIS officials. On Oct. 5, US forces took out an ISIS thug wanted for weapons smuggling in another helicopter raid in the region.
The elite American troops started the year with a February raid targeting ISIS leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi, who blew himself up rather than be taken captive.
Though ISIS has not had a stronghold over large swaths of Syria and Iraq since 2019, its sleeper cells have continued carrying out bloody attacks in both countries.
“These partnered operations reaffirm CENTCOM’s steadfast commitment to the region and the enduring defeat of ISIS,” CENTCOM commander Gen. Michael “Erik” Kurilla said in the statement. “The capture of these ISIS operatives will disrupt the terrorist organization’s ability to further plot and carry out destabilizing attacks.”