U.S. Raid Kills Senior ISIS Financier Linked to Attacks in Iraq, Syria

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said Friday that its forces carried out a raid in northern Syria on August 19, killing a senior ISIS member described as a key financier with extensive ties across the group’s regional network.

The target posed what CENTCOM officials called a “direct threat” to U.S. and Coalition forces as well as the new Syrian government under President Ahmed al-Sharaa.

“We will continue to pursue ISIS terrorists with unwavering determination, throughout the region,” said Admiral Brad Cooper, commander of CENTCOM. “Together with our partners and allies, CENTCOM remains steadfast in our commitment of ensuring the lasting defeat of ISIS and the protection of the U.S. homeland.”

The raid took place in Atimah, near Syria’s northern border. While CENTCOM did not disclose the individual’s identity, unconfirmed reports suggested the target may have been Abu Hafs al-Hashimi al-Qurashi, an Iraqi national reportedly viewed as a contender for ISIS’s Syria Emir position. Syrian state media reported the man was killed while attempting to flee.

According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, another Iraqi citizen also died during the operation. CENTCOM confirmed no U.S. troops were killed or injured.

This was the second U.S. operation in northern Syria since the fall of Bashar al-Assad and the formation of the new government in Damascus. In July, American forces killed ISIS leader Dhiya’ Zawba Muslih al-Hardani and his two sons in Aleppo’s al-Bab region.

ISIS remnants currently operate in small insurgent cells launching ambushes, assassinations, and bombings after losing their territorial strongholds in Syria and Iraq.

The operation comes as U.S. policy toward Syria shifts. In June, President Donald Trump revoked longstanding sanctions on Damascus after Assad’s ouster, though restrictions remain in place against individuals linked to terrorism, narcotics trafficking, and past abuses.