By The Opinion
02 Sep 2024, 18:17 PM EDT
U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces, in collaboration with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), captured Khaled Ahmed al-Dandal, an ISIS leader who was accused of aiding ISIS fighters after escaping from a detention center in Raqqah, Syria.
According to official information, during the early morning hours of September 1, CENTCOM and SDF forces captured the alleged ISIS facilitator who is believed to be assisting in the efforts of detained ISIS fighters, including fighters who had recently escaped.
CENTCOM Forces Partner with Syrian Democratic Forces to Capture ISIS Leader and Assist in Operation to Recapture Escaped ISIS Fighters
US Central Command (CENTCOM) forces, partnered with Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), captured an ISIS leader, who was assessed as helping ISIS… pic.twitter.com/Pdd2MzXI9Q
— US Central Command (@CENTCOM) September 2, 2024
Forces from the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) captured a leader of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group who helped several of the prisoners who escaped a few days ago from the Al Raqa detention center in Syria.
The central command also said it continues to collaborate with the FSD to arrest the three escaped prisoners who escaped last Saturday while being transferred from a prison in Al Raqa, a city in northern Syria that served as the capital of its self-proclaimed “caliphate.”
“A primary objective of IS remains to free its currently detained fighters and subsequently fuel a resurgence,” the statement says.
CENTCOM forces, in coordination with the FSD, will therefore “continue to mitigate the threats of future escapes and ensure the lasting defeat” of the terrorist group.
According to data provided by General Michael Erik Kurilla, commander of CENTCOM, more than 9,000 IS detainees remain in more than 20 SDF detention centers in Syria.
“If a large number of these IS fighters were to escape, it would represent an extreme danger to the region and beyond,” he added.
The Islamic State was defeated territorially in the country in 2019, but it still maintains active cells mainly in the vast Syrian desert of Badia, where it takes advantage of the complex topography to launch ambushes and retreat with hardly any casualties.
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