Top Islamic State Leader Killed in U.S.-Iraq Airstrike

Makki Muslih al-Rufaji, the second-highest IS leader, was eliminated in a coordinated operation in Iraq's Al-Anbar province.

Makki Muslih al-Rufaji, the Islamic State's second-in-command, was killed in a U.S.-Iraq airstrike in Al-Anbar province, Iraq.
Al-Rufaji was known as the IS 'governor' of Syrian and Iraqi provinces and coordinated international operations for the group.
The operation was conducted in collaboration with the Iraqi government and the Kurdish Regional Government, with the U.S. Central Command releasing footage of the strike.
IS, which declared a caliphate in 2014 and was defeated in 2017, continues to carry out sporadic attacks in Iraq through active sleeper cells.
The U.S. and Iraq recently agreed to end the international coalition's anti-IS mission in Iraq by 2026, including withdrawal from the Kurdish autonomous region.