Turkey has eliminated the new head of ISIS, says Erdogan

2 May 20231 year ago babelfish

Erdogan said Turkish intelligence eliminated the head of ISIS, Abu al Hussein al Hussayni al Qurashi. The article by Giuseppe Gagliano

In an interview with TRT Turk TV channel on Sunday, April 30, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan revealed that the "caliph" of ISIS (or Islamic State), Abu al Hussein al Hussayni al Qurashi, was neutralized during an operation conducted by the Turkish Secret Service (MIT) on April 29.

He specified “this individual was neutralized as part of an operation by the Turkish national intelligence organization in Syria (…). We will continue our fight against terrorist organizations without any discrimination."

THE SITE OF THE RAID

Local Syrian security sources said the raid took place near the city of Jinderes in northern Syria, which is controlled by rebel groups – particularly the Syrian national army – backed by Ankara. This locality which had been conquered by the Turkish army in 2018 had been badly affected by the earthquake of February 6, 2023.

ISIS DOES NOT PRONOUNCE

There was no announcement from ISIS, which is to be expected because the movement takes its time designing a new caliph. For the time being, even the Syrian National Army (ANS) has not made any comments.

WHAT HAPPENED

An AFP correspondent in northern Syria said members of Turkish intelligence services and Turkish-backed and trained local military police surrounded an abandoned farmhouse that served as an Islamic school on the outskirts of Jinderes on April 29.

The assault allegedly took place at night and exchanges of fire lasted about an hour before a large explosion was heard, probably at a time when the terrorist leader preferred to blow himself up rather than be captured alive.

The area was then closed off by security forces to prevent anyone from approaching it.

Significantly, as early as January 2023, he had received oaths of allegiance from all provinces ( wilayas ) of the Islamic State around the world, especially from Africa, but also from various supporters in around 40 countries. This had demonstrated that the 'caliphate' had a unifying capacity in the fight against apostates and unbelievers.

The death of Abu Hasan al-Hachimi al-Qourachi – his predecessor – had been announced by ISIS in November 2022. He had been killed "in combat", presumably in October of the same year. The US Army's CENTCOM had clarified that the terrorist official had died on October 15, stating: "This operation was conducted by the Free Syrian Army (ASL) in the Deraa province of Syria."

THE PREDECESSORS

Syrian activists involved in the clash told Reuters that Abu Hasan al-Hachimi al-Qourachi blew himself up after he and his aides were surrounded by local fighters in the town of Jasem. Washington then avoided saying that these village militias had made a pact with Bashar el-Assad's regime. The two predecessors, for their part, had been neutralized by members of the US special forces:

Abu Ibrahim Al-Hachimi on the night of February 2-3, 2022 in the city of Atme, located in the governorate of Idlib;
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in the night between 26 and 27 October 2019, in a house located away from the village of Baricha, in the same region.

ERDOGAN AND THE ELECTIONS IN Türkiye

We must be careful because Erdogan's statement comes in the last straight of the Turkish presidential election scheduled for May 14th. But if this anti-terrorist success is confirmed, it requires some observations.

Outside of Abu Hasan al-Hachimi al-Qourachi, who was neutralized in southern Syria, the other three "chiefs" were given in the Idlib region (including two by the Americans) in the northwest of the country. This area is heavily monitored by the Turks – army, MIT and local fighters "on orders" from Ankara – since their operations Source of peace (October 2019), Rameau d'olivier (2018) and Euphrates shield (2016-2017).

Why didn't the Turks intervene directly against Daesh in this area? However, it is possible that they preferred to let the Americans act, who may have benefited from the information gathered by MIT…

This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/mondo/erdogan-uccisione-capo-isis/ on Tue, 02 May 2023 09:20:58 +0000.