The leader of Islamic State, Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Quraishi, has been killed in a US raid in Syria.
He had been in charge of the terrorist organisation since 2019 after its longtime leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, died after detonating a suicide vest.
American Special Forces units descended on a two-storey residential building on the outskirts of Atmeh, a town in the northern Idlib province.
As the troops were approaching, al-Quraishi realised he had no way out and died in the exact same way as his predecessor.
He detonated a suicide vest that was wrapped around his body, which ended up killing members of his own family, including women and children. Thirteen people were reportedly killed in total.
US President Joe Biden described this as a particularly evil and cowardly way to die.
"As our troops approached to capture the terrorist, in a final act of desperate cowardice, with no regard to the lives of his own family or others the building, he chose to blow himself up," the US President said at the White House.
But he praised his troops for carrying out the highly important mission.
"Last night at my direction, U.S. military forces in the northwest Syria successfully undertook a counterterrorism operation to protect the American people and our Allies, and make the world a safer place," he said.
"Thanks to the skill and bravery of our Armed Forces, we have taken off the battlefield Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi-the leader of ISIS. All Americans have returned safely from the operation."
Two years ago, the US State Department offered an incredible $10 million reward to anyone who could give them accurate information on al-Qurayshi's location.
Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said the 'mission was successful' and that there were 'no US casualties' in the raid.
He also said the government department will investigate the civilian deaths that happened during the mission, according to The Guardian however he's fairly confident that US troops weren't responsible for the casualties.
Biden said the now-former ISIS leader was responsible for attacking a prison in Syria that was housing at least 3,000 Islamic State group detainees.
al-Qurayshi was also a 'driving force' behind the genocide of thousands of Yazidis in Iraq in 2014.
Authorities are hoping his death will 'lead to disruption within ISIS' as he was considered 'one of the few remaining...legacy leaders'.
Topics: Islamic State, News, US News, ISIS
Stewart Perrie