The second-in-command of the Islamic State militant group has been killed by a US air strike.
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The U.S. military has killed the second in command of the Islamic State, Fadhil Ahmad Al-Hayali, in an airstrike, the White House announced Friday.
He is a critical operational leader instrumental in planning the Islamic State attack in Mosul in June 2014, the statement said.
Price added that al-Hayali’s death would have a negative impact on the extremist group’s operations, as his charge extended to the finance, media, operations and logistics wings of ISIS.
Previously, there have been unconfirmed reports that Islamic State leader al-Baghdadi was seriously wounded during airstrikes in March.
“My experience in looking at the Islamic State suggests they have demonstrated an ability to move people up into positions” when high-ranking operatives are killed, said Seth Jones, a former Pentagon official.
“The United States and its coalition partners are determined to degrade and destroy this terrorist group which has wrought so much harm and suffering on the people of the region and beyond”, Price said.
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The U.S., working with dozens of other countries as well as Kurdish and Iraqi fighters, has sought to roll back ISIL’s territorial gains in both Iraq and Syria.
