CENTCOM launches 31 anti-ISIS operations in Syria, Iraq in July
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – US Central Command (CENTCOM) revealed on Wednesday it conducted 31 operations against Islamic State (ISIS) in July.
The CENTCOM said, in a press release, that they arrested 30 ISIS militants and killed five ISIS operatives.
“We have seen a dramatic reduction in ISIS activity and effectiveness across our area of operations.” said Maj. Gen. Matthew McFarlane, CJTF-OIR Commanding General.
In Syria, the CENTCOM with the participation of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) carried out 11 operations, in which six ISIS militants were arrested and three were killed.
In Iraq, the CENTCOM carried out 20 partnered operations, resulting in the arrest of 24 ISIS militants and killing two others.
In June, the CENTCOM announced the launching of 37 operations in both countries, killing 13 ISIS militants and arresting 21 others.
ISIS lost its final stronghold in Syria in March 2019. The SDF, with the support of the US-led Global Coalition, defeated ISIS after fierce battles in the town of Baghouz in the eastern countryside of Deir ez-Zor, eastern Syria, bringing an end to the so-called caliphate declared by the terrorist ISIS.
After Baghouz, thousands of ISIS militants were transferred to prisons, while their families were transferred to Hawl and Roj camps in the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES)-held areas.
The CENTCOM stressed the necessity of partnership with the SDF and Iraqi Security Forces in addressing challenges posed by ISIS within the region, Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, CENTCOM commander said.
“Our partners remain aggressively engaged to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS,” according to the press release.
The CENTCOM is one of the eleven unified combatant commands of the US Department of Defense. It was founded in 1983, taking over the previous responsibilities of the Rapid Deployment Joint Task Force (RDJTF). In northeast Syria, the CENTCOM aims at continuing to develop and enable the SDF to defeat ISIS and requesting the nations repatriate their citizens of ISIS families from Hawl and Roj camps, northeast Syria.