Military operations continue against IS leaders - Coalition

WASHINGTON, Feb 2 (KUNA) -- The US-led Coalition forces continue to carry out operations against the so-called Islamic State's (IS) leaders in Iraq and Syria, the Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR) announced Friday.
The coalition's operations aim to wipe out IS leaders of battlefields in Iraq and Syria, and undermine their ability to regroup and resume capacity to threaten citizens of all nations, CJTF-OIR said in a statement.
It also indicated that coalition's airstrikes killed one senior IS leader in Syria in November 2017, and another in December 2017, as well as killing four senior IS leaders in January 2018.
"The removal of these key terrorists disrupts IS leadership and information dissemination activities, reducing the terrorist group's ability to plan and conduct terrorist attacks both within Syria and Iraq, and abroad," it affirmed.
Among those killed was Shaykh Abu Anas Al-Furati, an IS senior military commander by a coalition airstrike in November 2017, near Hajin, Syria. Furati was responsible "for coordinating (IS) attacks within Syria." It noted.
His death further impairs IS command-and-control capabilities and reduces its ability to conduct terrorist activities in the region, added CJTF-OIR.
"The coalition and its partners continue to exert pressure on IS senior leaders and associates across multiple networks in order to degrade, disrupt, and dismantle IS structures and remove the terrorists throughout Iraq and Syria," it reiterated. (end) si.ma