It is quite likely we will see a lot of this from now on and that eventually there will be no Islamic State in Syria or Iraq. However, it is also equally likely we will see a whole lot more terrorist bombings in places like Turkey and Europe as these Isis Soldiers return home secretly and create havoc wherever they are from around the world.
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Senior Islamic State Leader Killed
| Wall Street Journal | - |
WASHINGTON—U.S.
forces killed a senior Islamic State leader, among several key members
of the militant group eliminated this week, Defense Secretary Ash Carter
said Friday.
Senior Islamic State Leader Killed
Defense Secretary Ash Carter described Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli as finance official
ENLARGE
Defense Secretary Ash
Carter said the U.S. coalition had killed an Islamic State leader who
was responsible for running the group’s finance operations.
Photo:
Associated Press
Mr. Carter said the death of Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli, also known as Haji Imam, would “hamper the organization’s ability to conduct operations both inside and outside Iraq and Syria.
Mr. Qaduli is considered by some analysts to be the Islamic State’s second-in-command, after Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The U.S. had previously offered a $7 million reward for “information that brings [him] to justice.”
ENLARGE
Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli is believe to be Islamic State’s second-in-command.
Photo:
AFP/Getty Images
Mr. Carter wouldn’t say where or how Mr. Qaduli was killed, urging caution when describing coalition operations in order to protect allies and forces in the Middle East. The U.S. has killed multiple senior and midlevel Islamic State militants in the past few months, though officials have said the group often finds replacements. Another top Islamic State official, Abu Umar al-Shishani, was killed several weeks ago.
Mr. Carter also wouldn’t say whether Mr. Qaduli played any role in this week’s terror attacks in Brussels. But he was a senior figure involved in the group’s financial operations, an area that has long been a target of U.S. strikes.
The deaths, combined with the destruction of bomb-making facilities in Iraq, have led Pentagon officials to assert they are making progress in degrading the terror network’s foothold in Iraq and Syria.
“Striking leadership is necessary … but it’s far from sufficient,” Mr. Carter said at a press conference. “Leaders can be replaced. However these leaders have been around for a long time. They are senior. They are experienced and so eliminating them is an important objective and achieves important results.”
U.S. officials say their local allies have regained ground from the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. The group retains large footholds in Iraq and Syria, however. It controls the major cities of Raqqa in Syria and Mosul in Iraq, and it has developed operations in more than 20 countries. The group’s top leader—Mr. al-Baghdadi—remains elusive.
Some U.S. intelligence officials believe the group’s recent terror attacks in France and Belgium reflect an evolving strategy, using external plotting to carry out attacks while it faces pressure in Iraq and Syria.
Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Friday that “the momentum is in our favor. There are a lot of reasons for us to be optimistic.” But he cautioned that the coalition and Iraqi forces still faced numerous challenges and that they were “not about to break the back of” the Islamic State.
The Iraqi government, with support from the U.S. military, is preparing to try to dislodge the Islamic State from Mosul, Gen. Dunford said. The timing of this operation was unclear, but one part of the strategy is to isolate Mosul in such a way so that Islamic State cannot move fighters or supplies in or out of the city.
Write to Damian Paletta at damian.paletta@wsj.com