US Army Collaborates with Syrian Democratic Forces; Fugitive ISIS Leader Captured

The United States Central Command announced on Monday that its forces, in cooperation with the Syrian Democratic Forces, have recaptured one of the ISIS leaders who had escaped from a Raqqa detention facility. According to CENTCOM, on Sunday, September 2, US Army forces, with the help of Syrian forces, arrested Khalid Ahmed Al-Dandal, a fugitive ISIS leader. Previously, five 'foreign terrorist fighters' of ISIS, including two Russian citizens, two Afghan citizens, and one Libyan citizen, escaped from the Raqqa detention facility on Friday, September 1. Syrian forces quickly apprehended two of the escaped prisoners named Imam Abdulwahid Ikhwan from Russia and Mohammad No Mohammad from Libya, but the search for the other three fugitives, Timur Talburkan Abdash from Russia, Shawab Mohammad Al-Abdali, and Atal Khalid Zar, both from Afghanistan, is still ongoing. CENTCOM states that ISIS intends to revive its terrorist group in Syria and Iraq by freeing or escaping its fighters in the near future. According to CENTCOM, over 9,000 ISIS members are held in more than 20 detention facilities of the Syrian Democratic Forces, which are literally an 'ISIS army in detention.' CENTCOM believes that the escape of these ISIS members poses a serious threat to the region and the world. General Michael Eric Kurilla stated, 'We will continue to work with the international community to repatriate these ISIS fighters to their home countries for prosecution.' On September 1, CENTCOM forces, along with Iraqi security forces, killed 15 ISIS members in a joint operation in western Iraq. This operation aimed to disrupt ISIS's ability to plan, organize, and execute attacks against Iraqi civilians as well as US citizens, allies, and partners in the region and beyond.