The United States military has killed an Al Qaeda affiliate leader linked to a deadly Islamic State group (IS) attack on Americans in Syria last month.
US Central Command said on Saturday, local time, that Bilal Hasan al-Jasim, who had "direct ties" to the IS gunman behind the December attack, had been killed in a CENTCOM strike in Syria's north-west the day before.
"The death of a terrorist operative linked to the deaths of three Americans demonstrates our resolve in pursuing terrorists who attack our forces," CENTCOM chief Admiral Brad Cooper said in a statement.
"We will never forget, and never relent," US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said in an post on X that included Centcom's statement.
CENTCOM said al-Jasim was an "experienced terrorist leader who plotted attacks and was directly connected" with the IS gunman implicated.
The December 13 attack in the central Syrian city of Palmyra resulted in the death of two US soldiers and an American interpreter. At least three Syrian personnel were also injured.
The US personnel targeted were supporting Operation Inherent Resolve, an international effort to combat IS involving more than 80 countries, which seized swathes of Syrian and Iraqi territory in 2014.
Since the incident, US forces have been conducting large-scale strikes in Syria, with the US military saying it had hit more than 100 IS sites, captured more than 300 operatives and killed at least 20 across the country.
Syria's interior ministry said the IS gunman responsible for last month's attack was a member of the security forces who had been set to be fired for extremism.
US President Donald Trump had pledged retaliation in response to the incident.
ABC/wires
ABC
