Top ISIS leader killed by US air strike

A top ISIS leader was killed by a U.S. air strike in northwest Syria on Tuesday, the military announced.

The strike outside of Jindayris killed Maher al-Agal, the leader of ISIS in Syria and one of the top five leaders of the terrorist group, U.S. Central Command said in a statement.

Al-Agal was responsible for pursuing the development of ISIS networks outside of Iraq and Syria.

In addition, a senior ISIS official “closely associated” with al-Agal was seriously injured during the strike, the statement said without identifying the individual. An initial review of the strike indicated that there were no civilian casualties.

Col. Joe Buccino, a CENTCOM spokesperson, said the strike “reaffirms CENTCOM’s steadfast commitment to the region and the enduring defeat of ISIS.”

“The removal of these ISIS leaders will disrupt the terrorist organization’s ability to further plot and carry out global attacks,” Buccino said.

The strike is the latest the U.S. has carried out in northwest Syria targeting leaders of terrorist groups.  

In late June, Abu Hamzah al Yemeni, a senior leader of al Qaeda-linked Hurras al-Din, was killed by a strike in the northwestern province of Idlib.

Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, a senior leader of ISIS, was killed after he blew himself up during a U.S. air raid targeting him.