U.S. airstrikes have killed 60 Islamic State terrorists in the last 10 days, U.S. Central Command officials told Military Times.
The spree of airstrikes against the terrorist group comes amid renewed attention to the terrorist group’s affiliate in Yemen. The Thursday strikes reportedly killed an additional nine ISIS terrorists in the region and follow a slew of U.S. sanctions placed on the terror group’s leaders in Yemen. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned several ISIS in Yemen leaders Wednesday, including financiers, weapons providers, and the leader known as Abu Sulayman al-Adani.
The spree began with Oct. 17 strikes targeting a training camp in the region that killed “dozens” of fighters. “ISIS used the camps to train militants to conduct terror attacks using AK-47s, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenade launchers and endurance training,” the Pentagon noted in an Oct. 17 statement. “ISIS has used the ungoverned spaces of Yemen to plot, direct, instigate, resource and recruit for attacks against America and its allies around the world. For years, Yemen has been a hub for terrorist recruiting, training and transit.”
ISIS is not usually the main target of U.S. strikes in Yemen, the country is also host to Al-Qaida’s most active affiliate known as AQAP. President Donald Trump has dramatically increased the U.S. effort against AQAP since taking office. Trump’s first week in office was marked by a botched late January U.S. Navy SEAL raid, and he has declared the country an “area of active hostilities” to allow the military to pursue targets without White House approval.
The designation led to a flurry of airstrikes in March when the Trump administration struck Yemen more times in a single week than the Obama administration did in nearly four years.
Follow Saagar Enjeti on Twitter
Send tips to saagar@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.