US kills Al-Qaeda affiliate leader tied to December attack in Syria, Centcom says

US military forces on Friday killed an Al-Qaeda affiliate leader linked to a Daesh attack on Americans in Syria last month, US Central Command ⁠said in a statement on Saturday. (File)
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Updated 18 January 2026
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US kills Al-Qaeda affiliate leader tied to December attack in Syria, Centcom says

  • Bilal Hasan Al-Jasim had “direct ties” to a Daesh gunman who killed and injured US and Syrian ⁠personnel

WASHINGTON: US military forces on Friday killed an Al-Qaeda affiliate leader linked to a Daesh attack on Americans in Syria last month, US Central Command ⁠said in a statement on Saturday.
Bilal Hasan Al-Jasim had “direct ties” to a Daesh gunman who killed and injured US and Syrian ⁠personnel on December 13 in Palmyra, Syria, Central Command said.

“The death of a terrorist operative linked to the deaths of three Americans demonstrates our resolve in pursuing terrorists who attack our forces,” said Admiral Brad Cooper, ⁠the head of US Central Command, in a statement.
Since the December 13 attack, US forces have been conducting strikes in Syria, with the US military saying it has hit more than 100 Daesh targets.


Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Daesh-linked detainees

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Syrian government says it controls prison in Raqqa with Daesh-linked detainees

  • Prison holds detainees linked to Daesh, and witnessed ⁠clashes in its vicinity between advancing Syrian government forces and Kurdish fighters
The Syrian interior ministry said on Friday it had taken over Al-Aktan ‌prison in ‌the ‌city ⁠of Raqqa ‌in northeast Syria, a facility that was formerly under ⁠the control of ‌Kurdish-led ‍Syrian ‍Democratic Forces (SDF).
The ‍prison held detainees linked to the militant group Daesh, and witnessed ⁠clashes in its vicinity between advancing Syrian government forces and SDF.