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Head of Islamic State "Middle East External Networks" Killed in Airstrike in Raqqa, Syria
(Long War Journal) Thomas Joscelyn - "Coalition forces conducted a strike resulting in the death of Iraqi national Abd al-Basit al-Iraqi, who was emir of ISIL's [Islamic State's] Middle East external networks, including against Americans, Turkish and European targets," U.S. Defense Department spokesman Col. John Dorrian announced Wednesday. Abd al-Basit "was a key facilitator for ISIL's external operations routes through Turkey and was responsible for attacks within the Middle East." "Along with these external attacks and plots, he has also been connected to convoy, reconnaissance, and facilitation of extremist travel, finances and weapons in the region." His "death degrades and delays ISIL's current plots against regional targets and deprives them of a capable senior manager who provided oversight over many external attacks." The writer is a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.