Advertisement

  1. National

US raid in Syria kills 'senior Islamic State leader'

A suspected Islamic State senior leader has been killed in a Special Ops raid in Syria, US Secretary of Defence has said.

The mission - sanctioned by Barack Obama - was intended merely to capture Abu Sayyaf, who the US said helped direct "illict oil, gas and financial operations".

However, the suspected militant was killed when he engaged US personnel in combat, the White House said.

View all 8 updates ›

Obama 'authorised' Syria raid mission based on intel

A US National Security council spokesperson said in a statement that a Special Ops mission in Syria was "authorised by the President" Barack Obama.

The President authorised this operation upon the unanimous recommendation of his national security team and as soon as we had developed sufficient intelligence and were confident the mission could be carried out successfully and consistent with the requirements for undertaking such operations.

This operation was conducted with the full consent of Iraqi authorities and, like our existing airstrikes against ISIL in Syria, consistent with domestic and international law.

– US National Security council spokesperson

More top news