The Pentagon announced on Friday that US forces have killed the Islamic State’s finance minister, Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli. Defence Secretary Ash Carter said that they are systematically eliminating ISIS’ cabinet.
On the other hand, Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Joseph Dunford said recommendations are on ways to increase US support for Iraq’s ground fight against ISIS and are going to be discussed with President Barack Obama soon.
Several Key Members of IS Eliminated
Dunford’s comments came as Carter announced that several key members of the Islamic State group were eliminated this week. According to a senior US official, the group’s financial minister was killed along with two associates in a US raid in Syria. Al-Qaduli is known by several names: Abdul-Rahman Mustafa Mohammed, Haji Iman, Haji Imam and Abu Iman, Haji Ayman and Abu Alaa al-Afari.
In a separate operation, a US airstrike in Mosul killed another top Islamic State leader, the official said. Carter would not provide details of the strikes, and the US official was not authorized to discuss the operations so spoke on condition of anonymity.
The successful attacks are part of a string of strikes targeting the group’s leadership even as it losses territory in both Iraq and Syria. Dunford said there has been “indisputable” momentum against the Islamic State in recent weeks, as coalition airstrikes and Iraqi ground forces target the group’s leaders, command and control structure and financing.
By no means would I say that we are about to break the back of ISIL or that the fight is over, but we have lots of reasons to be optimistic.General Joseph Dunford, Joint Chiefs of Staff, United States of America
IS Leader Killed was “Well-Known Terrorist”
Carter said the senior IS leader killed was a “well-known terrorist” who had a hand in terrorist plots outside of Iraq and Syria. He said he was not aware of any link between him and this week’s terrorist attacks in Brussels.
Indeed, the U.S. military killed several key ISIL terrorists this week, including we believe Haji Iman, who was an ISIL senior leader serving as a finance minister and who also was responsible for some external affairs and plots. The removal of this ISIL leader will hamper the organization’s ability to conduct operations both inside and outside Iraq and Syria.Ash Carter, Defence Secretary, United States of America
The U.S. military has killed numerous Islamic State leaders in recent months. Earlier this month the Pentagon said it killed Omar al-Shishani, described as the Islamic State’s “minister of war,” in an airstrike in Syria. In November, the Pentagon said an airstrike in Libya killed Abu Nabil, another top IS leader.
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