WASHINGTON DC—The Pentagon confirmed Tuesday the killings of Abu Bakr al-Turkmani, a senior Islamic State (ISIS) leader in Iraq and French Jihadist David Drugeon, an al-Qaeda operative and explosives expert by coalition airstrikes in Syria.
“Coalition forces conducted an airstrike resulting in the death of Abu Bakr al-Turkmani, an ISIL senior leader, on Sept. 10 near Tal Afar, Iraq,” said Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook.
According to Cook, al-Turkmani was an ISIL administrative emir and had been an al-Qaeda member before joining ISIS.
Al-Turkmani was closely affiliated with many senior ISIS leaders in Mosul, he added.
“His death will disrupt ISIL operations in Tal Afar impacting the violent extremist freedom of maneuver in ISIL-controlled areas,” said Cook.
The Pentagon official also confirmed that coalition airstrikes had killed Drugeon, a French national who was an al-Qaeda explosives expert, on July 05 2015 near Aleppo, Syria.
“Drugeon was a member of a network of veteran al-Qaeda operatives, sometimes called the Khorasan Group, who are plotting attacks against the United States, its allies, and partners,” Cook said, adding that the militant’s death “will degrade and disrupt ongoing external operations of al-Qaeda against the United States, its allies, and partners.”
