US military says senior Islamic State group leader killed in Syria air strike

The US military conducted an ​airstrike in northwestern Syria last week that killed a senior Islamic State (IS) group leader, US Central ​Command ‌said on Wednesday.

The strike, carried ⁠out on Friday, was part "of ongoing US efforts to ‌disrupt and eliminate terrorists seeking to ⁠attack Americans abroad or the US homeland" and killed Ali Husayn al-Ulaywi, it ​said in a statement on ‌X.

The IS group has declared a new phase of operations in Syria against the government ‌of President Ahmed al-Sharaa, carrying out a spate of ​attacks since February. Last year, Sharaa's government joined the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group.

Read moreIn post-Assad Syria, displaced people await reconstruction

On Saturday, ​the militant group claimed responsibility for an ​attack near the city ​of Manbij in Syria's northeastern Aleppo province.

The IS group controlled around ​a quarter or more of Syria at the peak of its power during the Syrian civil war a decade ago, before ⁠being driven out of the territory by ⁠a US-led coalition ​and other foes.

(FRANCE 24 with Reuters)