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An al-Qaeda leader with direct ties to the ISIS terrorist responsible for the December 13 killing of two American soldiers and an American translator was killed in a US raid in northwestern Syria on Friday, US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced on Saturday.
U.S. Central Command officials said Bilal Hassan al-Jassem was an experienced terrorist leader, planned attacks and was “directly linked” to the ISIS militant who killed and wounded American and Syrian personnel last month in Palmyra, Syria.
Commander of US Central Command, Admiral Brad Cooper, said: “The killing of a terrorist operative linked to the killing of three Americans shows our determination to pursue terrorists who attack our forces.” “There is no safe place for those who carry out, plan, or inspire attacks on American citizens and our combatants. We will find you.”
US Central Command launched large-scale strikes in Syria in response to the December 13 attack.
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Two Iowa National Guard members and an American translator were killed on December 13 in an ISIS attack in Syria. (History/Universal Images Collection via Getty Images and Dalil Soliman/AFP via Getty Images)
Operation Hawkeye Strike resulted in U.S. and partner forces striking more than 100 ISIS infrastructure targets and weapons sites with more than 200 precision-guided munitions.
More than 300 ISIS members have been captured and more than 20 killed across Syria over the past year, according to US Central Command.
US Special Envoy for Syria Tom Barrack met with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, and members of their team in Damascus on January 10 to discuss recent developments in Aleppo and the broader path forward in Syria’s historic transformation.
Trump attends a solemn transfer of Iowa State Guardsmen and civilians killed in an ISIS attack in Syria
US forces are patrolling the town of Tal Maarouf in Al-Hasakah Governorate, northeastern Syria. (Dalil Suleiman/AFP via Getty Images)
Barak said in a statement on the X website that President Donald Trump agreed to lift sanctions in order to “give Syria a chance” to move forward.
Barak wrote in the post: “The United States government welcomes the historic transformation in Syria and extends its support to the Syrian government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa in its work to achieve stability in the country, rebuild national institutions, and realize the aspirations of all Syrians for peace, security, and prosperity.”
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He added that the Syrian government reaffirmed its commitment to the integration agreement concluded in March 2025 with the Syrian Democratic Forces, but described developments in Aleppo that “appear to challenge the terms of this agreement” as deeply disturbing.
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“We urge all parties to exercise maximum restraint, cease hostilities immediately, and return to dialogue in accordance with the agreements of March 10 and April 1, 2025 between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces,” Barak wrote. “The violence threatens to undermine the progress achieved since the fall of the Assad regime and invites external intervention that serves neither party’s interests. … The goal remains a united, sovereign Syria – at peace with itself and its neighbors – where equality, justice and opportunity are available to all its people.”