In a targeted air strike in Syria, Iraqi special forces, in cooperation with the international anti-ISIS coalition, have killed a leading commander of the jihadist militia Islamic State, according to the Iraqi counterterrorism service ICTS on Friday.
The person killed was Omar Abdel Qader Bassam, better known by his alias Abdul Rahman al-Halabi. He was considered one of the highest-ranking operational leaders of the terrorist group. According to the ICTS, the airstrike took place on Friday morning “on Syrian territory” in coordination with the US-led international coalition forces. The agency did not disclose the exact location.
Responsible for external operations
According to Iraqi sources, Halabi was responsible for the “operational and external security” of ISIS structures. This included planning and coordinating attacks in the so-called “distant provinces” outside Syria and Iraq. He was directly involved in planning the attack on the Iranian embassy in Beirut in 2013 and prepared further attacks in Europe and the US, which were thwarted by intelligence measures.
A total of 23 people were killed and around 160 injured in the double suicide bombing of the Iranian embassy in Lebanon in November 2013.
ISIS loses more leaders
The Iraqi counterterrorism service spoke of a “strategic blow” against the remnants of ISIS structures. According to the service, more than six high-ranking ISIS commanders have been “eliminated” in the past two months alone.
Although the terrorist militia was defeated militarily in Iraq in 2017 and in Syria in 2019, ISIS cells are still active—especially in the hard-to-reach desert regions on the Syrian-Iraqi border. According to estimates by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), up to 2,000 IS mercenaries are still active there.
Security cooperation between Iraq and Syria
Iraq and Syria have recently stepped up their security cooperation, particularly in the border area and in the fight against terrorism. The US-led coalition continues to carry out regular targeted operations against ISIS leaders in Syria, with the SDF and the Asayish (Internal Security Forces) in the autonomous region of northern and eastern Syria, also participating.