Dual strikes on suspected IS hotspots in Syria and Iraq kill more than 71

Coalition airstrikes have targeted a gathering of Islamic State (IS) leaders at a house in northern Iraq, a US defence official has said. Senior IS officers were meeting in Al Qaim, a town near Mosul which is under the Islamist group’s control. After the strikes began, militants evacuated a nearby hospital and used loudspeakers to ask for blood donors. The bodies of 50 militants have since been transported to a morgue in Mosul, according to Reuters. Unconfirmed reports from the news agency suggested the leader of IS, along with his deputy, were killed in the attack. It is unclear whether top commander Abu Bakr al Baghdadi was among the militants targeted, a US official said.

We cannot confirm if ISIL leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi was among those present.

U.S. Central Command spokesman Patrick Ryder

Meanwhile, activists say Syrian government air raids killed at least 21 civilians in a northern town controlled by the Islamic State group. The Aleppo Media Center activist collective and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights both reported the overnight airstrikes on the town of Al Bab in Aleppo province. Observatory director Rami Abdurrahman said Sunday there were 10 strikes in total, including seven so-called barrel bombs dropped from helicopters. He says at least 21 people were killed and more than 100 wounded. The Aleppo Media Center put the death toll at 30, with 85 wounded. Differences in casualty figures are common in the chaotic aftermath of attacks in Syria.

Syria Middle East