Could take advantage of situation

US military kills IS leader in Syria

The US military says it has killed a leader of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist militia in Syria. The man was killed in an attack in the east of the country, the US regional command announced. Another IS member was also killed.

The attack took place in an area that was controlled by Syrian government troops and their allies until the fall of Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad. The US would not allow IS to exploit the current situation in Syria to its advantage, said Erik Kurilla, commander of the US forces in the region. The terrorist organization intended to free around 8,000 members who are currently in Syrian prisons. The military will crack down on them, he said.

Although victory over the Islamic State was announced in 2019, cells are still active in Syria. The US armed forces are leading an international force in the fight against IS. They are to remain in the country for the time being, even after the fall of Assad.

More US soldiers in Syria than expected
It recently emerged that more US forces are stationed in the country than previously thought. Previously, the ministry had spoken of 900 soldiers, but now there are said to be around 2,000. Pentagon spokesman Pat Ryder explained that 900 of them are in Syria for a longer-term deployment of nine to twelve months at a time. The additional forces are troops who are only stationed there for one to three months.

The discrepancy in the numbers has only now been noticed internally, Ryder said. The long-time ruler Assad was overthrown on December 8 by a rebel alliance led by the Islamist group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. In Iraq, the USA has stationed around 2,500 soldiers in the fight against IS.