US operation kills senior Daesh/ISIS operative in northern Somalia

WASHINGTON

A US military raid in northern Somalia has killed a key Daesh/ISIS facilitator and 10 other terrorist operatives, two senior administration officials said Thursday.

US forces had sought to capture Bilal al-Sudani during the operation, which was described as taking place in a "mountainous cave complex," but he was killed during the ensuing hostilities Wednesday night, one of the officials said.

Al-Sudani was previously placed under US sanctions in 2012, when he was affiliated with Somalia's al-Shabaab terrorist group, and the officials said he was supporting Daesh/ISIS's operations in Africa and beyond, particularly via fundraising, when he was targeted.

Planning for the raid took place over several months and involved multiple US government agencies, the official said. The Pentagon briefed President Joe Biden on the operation last week, and the commander-in-chief signed off on it earlier this week.

"Through this operation and others, President Biden has made it very clear that we are committed to finding and eliminating terrorist threats to the United States and to the American people wherever they are hiding, no matter how remote," said one of the officials.

"The United States and our allies and partners are safer today as a result of this operation yesterday, and the president will continue to take all necessary steps to protect the United States and its interests around the world from terrorist threats where they exist," he added.

No US military personnel were killed, but one service member was injured by a US military dog. No civilians were killed or injured, according to the officials.