ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) on Tuesday said that its partnered operations with local forces in Iraq and Syria resulted in at least 44 suspected Islamic State (ISIS) members killed and 166 others detained during the first six months of 2024.
At least 30 ISIS operatives were killed and 74 others were captured in 137 operations conducted in Iraq alongside local security forces in the first half of the year, according to the CENTCOM statement. In 59 joint operations with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) during that same period, a total of 14 ISIS operatives were killed and 92 were detained.
The operations in both countries led to the killing of eight senior leaders of the group and the arrest of 32 others.
“These leaders include those responsible for planning of operations outside of Syria and Iraq, recruiting, training, and weapons smuggling. The removal of these individuals from their leadership positions further degrades ISIS capabilities to conduct external operations in the U.S. and allied nations,” read the CENTCOM statement.
Baghdad has downgraded the threat that ISIS poses, saying that the group has been confined. The Iraqi government, under pressure from Iran-backed armed groups to expel US forces from the country, has begun talks with Washington to wind down the coalition mission.
The US-led coalition advises and provides aerial assistance to Kurdish Peshmerga forces and the Iraqi army, as well as the SDF in the fight against ISIS.
ISIS seized control of vast swathes of Iraqi and Syrian land in 2014 but was declared territorially defeated in 2017 and 2019 respectively. While the group lacks any territorial presence on the ground, it still continues to pose serious security risks through bombings, hit-and-run attacks, and abductions in both countries.
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