TUNIS, August 20. /TASS/. One of the leaders of the Islamic State terrorist group (IS, banned in Russia), who led the cells associated with the organization in Syria, was eliminated by international coalition forces in the north-west of the Arab republic, Al-Ikhbariya TV channel reported quoting a source in the Syrian security service.
According to his information, Iraqi citizen Salah Numan, known by the nickname Ali, was hiding in the village of Atmah in the north of Idlib province. Coalition troops of Syria and Iraq launched an air strike on the house and surrounded the building. The extremist tried to escape, but was shot dead on the spot.
Islamic State militants have been operating in Syria and Iraq since 2013. By the middle of 2015, IS, according to various sources, controlled about 70% of Syria. In this situation, Russian President Vladimir Putin, at the request of Bashar al-Assad, who was in office at the time, launched a Russian military operation in the Arab republic. In 2015, the Russian Aerospace Forces launched airstrikes on the ISIS positions. In 2018, Sergey Shoigu, the then Defense Minister, said that the ISIS gangs had been completely defeated with Russian support during the three years of fighting. Nevertheless, clandestine terrorist cells continue to operate there.