Islamic State Leader Dies in US Special Forces Raid in Northwest Syria

US President Joe Biden announced Thursday morning that US Special Forces carried out a “successful” counterterrorism operation and have “taken off the battlefield” Islamic State leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi. The operation, meant “to protect the American people and our allies, and make the world a safer place,” Biden said, took place on a building in northwest Syria near the Turkish border in the rebel-held province of Idlib. A senior administration official said al-Qurayshi died at the beginning of the operation when he exploded a bomb that killed him and members of his own family, including women and children, The New York Times reported. At least 13 people, including six children, were killed in the raid, according to reports citing residents and first responders. A building also was reported to have been leveled during the operation and is where some of the bodies have been found. The Pentagon said earlier in a statement that “US Special Operations forces under the control of US Central Command conducted a counterterrorism mission this evening in northwest Syria. The mission was successful. There were no US casualties.” The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights watchdog said US troops used helicopters to land in the area and attacked a house, clashing with fighters on the ground. Reports have come out citing an unnamed US official saying that one of the helicopters used in the raid had a mechanical problem and had to be blown up on the ground in Syria. The operation comes amid an uptick in activity on the part of the Islamic State in the region, including an attempt last week to free Islamic State operatives from a Kurdish-run prison in northeastern Syria. Biden is expected to discuss the operation in a nationally televised address later on Thursday.