ARA News

Hasakah, Syria – Two senior jihadists from the Islamic State group (IS/ISIS) were killed in the embattled city of Hasakah, northeastern Syria, when an IS stronghold was hit by a U.S.-led airstrike on Monday.

Abu Osama al-Iraqi and Abu Amer ar-Rafdan, prominent IS militants who used to lead the group’s operations in Syria’s Hasakah against Kurdish forces and Syrian army, were reportedly killed during a coalition airstrike on IS headquarters southern Hasakah. 

Speaking to ARA News in the IS-held Deir ez-Zor province, media activist Rami al-Hakim reported that IS leadership confirmed the death of Abu Osama al-Iraqi, Governor of the Barakah State (Hasakah province) with the former Governor of Deir ez-Zor State, Amer ar-Rafdan in a U.S. airstrike.

The source pointed out that ar-Rafdan was one of the first people who swore allegiance to the radical group in the province of Deir ez-Zor when the group took over the area. Also, he was responsible for the emergence of the radical group in the Deir ez-Zor in early 2013.

“Al-Iraqi, on the other hand, was known for his close relation with Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the alleged Caliph of the Islamic State,” the source added.

In June, 2015, the IS radicals launched a major offensive on the city of Hasakah, during which they took control of southern neighborhoods of the city. 

Reporting by: Zozan Shekho

Source: ARA News