Senior ISIS leader in Somalia killed in US raid

Mike Brest

January 26, 04:53 PM January 26, 04:53 PM

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U.S. forces killed what officials described as a senior ISIS leader in a helicopter raid in a remote area of Somalia on Thursday.

Roughly 10 ISIS operatives were killed, including Bilal al-Sudani, whom Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin described as “a key facilitator for ISIS’s global number.” He was “responsible for fostering the growing presence of ISIS in Africa and for funding the group’s operations worldwide, including in Afghanistan.”

“Given the remote location of the operation, the assessment is that no civilians were injured or killed. Protecting civilians remains a vital part of the command’s operations to promote greater security for all Africans,” U.S. Africa Command said in a statement.

This action leaves the United States and its partners safer and more secure, and it reflects our steadfast commitment to protecting Americans from the threat of terrorism at home and abroad,” he continued. “No civilians were harmed as a result of this operation. We are grateful to our extraordinary service members as well as our intelligence community and other interagency partners for their support to this successful counterterrorism operation.”

Military officials anticipated capturing him, but the enemy combatants’ response resulted in his death, and the deaths of others, senior administration officials said, adding that there were no casualties among the American service members or civilians.

They describe him as “a terrorist of significance,” while U.S. forces were able to gather new intelligence on future ISIS plans.

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Earlier on Thursday, United States Africa Command said that military forces “conducted a successful counterterrorism operation in Somalia. Given the remote location of the operation, the assessment is that no civilians were injured or killed. Protecting civilians remains a vital part of the command’s operations to promote greater security for all Africans.”

Officials did not provide additional details.