U.S. commandos kill top Islamic State official in Syria

U.S. special forces have killed a senior Islamic State leader and captured his wife in eastern Syria, the Pentagon says. The target was identified as Abu Sayyaf, who helped direct the group’s oil, gas and financial operations. His wife Umm Sayyaf, also believed to be a member of the militant group, is in U.S. military custody in Iraq. Pentagon chief Ash Carter said no U.S. forces were killed or injured in the raid, which was conducted by U.S. personnel based out of Iraq. The soldiers killed Sayyaf when he engaged with them. The rare ground operation inside Syria was ordered by President Barack Obama.

The President authorised this operation upon the unanimous recommendation of his national security team and as soon as we had developed sufficient intelligence and were confident the mission could be carried out successfully.

White House National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan

During the mission, the soldiers also rescued a young Yazidi woman who appeared to have been held as a slave by the couple, Ms Meehan added. IS militants captured hundreds of members of the Yazidi religious minority in northern Iraq during their rampage across the country last summer. A U.S.-led coalition has been striking IS militants in Syria since last year, but this is only the second time troops have carried out a ground raid. A previous operation was aimed at rescuing Americans held hostage by the group. Syrian state media earlier reported that Syrian government forces killed at least 40 IS fighters, including a senior commander in charge of oil fields, in an attack Saturday on the country’s largest oil field, which is held by IS. It identified the commander as Abu al-Teem al-Saudi.

Middle East commandos