Turkey has just struck a blow against the Islamic State (IS). “The presumed leader of Daesh, code name Abu Hussein al-Qurachi, was neutralized during an operation carried out yesterday by MIT (Turkish secret services) in Syria,” Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Sunday during an interview on the channel. TRT Türk Television.
The Turkish president clarified that the intelligence services had been following the IS leader’s trail “for a long time”, without providing further details on the circumstances of the operation.
At the head of Daesh since the end of 2022
The terrorist organization announced on November 30 the death of its previous leader, Abu Hassan al-Hachimi al-Qourachi, without specifying the circumstances. He was immediately replaced by Abu Al-Hussein al-Husseini al-Qurachi, according to IS.
According to an AFP correspondent in northern Syria, Turkish intelligence services and local military police supported by Turkey cordoned off an area north of the town of Jandairis, in the Afrin region (north-Eastern) on Saturday. west), about ten kilometers from the Turkish border. Residents interviewed said an operation had targeted an abandoned farmhouse that once served as an Islamic school.
Turkey has been deploying troops in northern Syria since 2020 and controls entire areas with its Syrian proxies. On the other hand, despite its territorial defeat, IS is still carrying out attacks in Syria. At least 41 people, including 24 civilians, were killed on April 16 in the country in two attacks attributed to the jihadist group against sand truffle collectors and shepherds.