The U.S. Army announced Sunday that it has captured three suspected Islamic State members in an air and ground raid in eastern Syria.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement that the raid took place this Saturday and that a logistics specialist, an Islamic State middleman and an «associate» of the jihadist organization have been captured.
«This operation reaffirms CENTCOM’s strong commitment to the region and the enduring defeat of Islamic State,» said U.S. Central Command spokesman Joe Buccino.
«The capture will disrupt the terrorist organization’s ability to plot and carry out a greater number of attacks that threaten regional security and stability,» Buccino explained.
The general added that the terrorist group «poses a threat» to both Washington’s partners and «the people of Iraq, Syria and more.» «Our mission to defeat the Islamic State together with our partners in the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) continues,» he concluded.
CENTCOM has also reported that a civilian has been wounded as part of the raid. «The injured civilian has been escorted by our partner forces to a nearby medical care center along with a family member, who subsequently accompanied him back to his home,» the missive reads.
In mid-December, the U.S. Army confirmed the resumption of joint patrols with the SDF, after they had been suspended in November due to Turkish bombing as part of Operation Sword Claw, a bombing campaign against Kurdish groups following the Nov. 13 bombing in the Turkish city of Istanbul that left six dead and more than 80 wounded.
The Turkish government has blamed the Istanbul bombing on the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) and said that the main suspect had received orders from the Kurdish-Syrian militia People’s Protection Units (YPG) – the main element of the SDF – although both the PKK and the SDF have disassociated themselves from the attack.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
