The battle for the prison claimed the lives of hundreds and was a bleak reminder that even after the collapse of the Caliphate, and now the death of Mr al-Qurayshi, the group’s ability to sow chaotic violence persists. Indeed, a United Nations counter-terrorism report released this week estimates that the Islamic State is still detaining 6,000 to 10,000 fighters in Iraq and Syria, “where it is forming cells and training agents to carry out attacks.”
Also this week, the State Department is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of Sanaullah Ghafari, the leader of Islamic State of Khorasan, or ISIS-K, the group’s affiliate in Afghanistan. . The terrorist group claimed responsibility for an August 26 attack on Kabul International Airport that killed 13 US servicemen and as many as 170 civilians during the US-led evacuation.
On Thursday, two senior US military officials described the planning and execution of the raid to a small group of reporters during a conference call. They spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss operational matters.
The mission, led by Delta Force commandos, was launched last September with a tip that the ISIS leader was hiding on the top floor of a house in northwestern Syria. Overseen by the Army’s Central Command, the commandos rehearsed dozens of times, and Mr. Biden was briefed on an exercise using a tabletop model of the building. The troops also practiced using a model of the building they would eventually raid.
At the end of December, the commandos were ready and Mr. Biden approved the mission. But bad weather in northwestern Syria and the desire to carry out the mission on a moonless night forced the operation to February 2.
The US attack in Atmeh, supported by Apache helicopters, armed MQ-9 Reaper drones and attack aircraft, resembled the October 2019 raid in which Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the previous leader of the Islamic State, died committing suicide. detonated vest as US troops invaded a shelter not far from where last week’s operation took place.
US helicopters were launched from a base in northeastern Syria controlled by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, and made several refueling stops during the 800-mile overnight mission across the country. US officials warned Israel, Turkey and Russia, which have troops in northwestern Syria, shortly before the mission got underway, to avoid any accidental contact, the officials said.
