US Airstrikes on Syria Kill 37 Militants Affiliated with Extremist Groups

 US soldiers are seen during a joint military exercise between US-led forces and members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on September 7, 2022. (AFP)
US soldiers are seen during a joint military exercise between US-led forces and members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on September 7, 2022. (AFP)
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US Airstrikes on Syria Kill 37 Militants Affiliated with Extremist Groups

 US soldiers are seen during a joint military exercise between US-led forces and members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on September 7, 2022. (AFP)
US soldiers are seen during a joint military exercise between US-led forces and members of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in Syria's northeastern Hasakah province on September 7, 2022. (AFP)

In Syria, 37 militants affiliated to the extremist ISIS group and an al-Qaeda-linked group were killed in two strikes, the United States military said Sunday.

Two of the dead were senior militants, it said.

US Central Command said it struck northwestern Syria on Tuesday, targeting a senior militant from the al-Qaeda-linked Hurras al-Deen group and eight others. They say he was responsible for overseeing military operations.

They also announced a strike from earlier this month on Sept. 16, where they conducted a “large-scale airstrike” on an ISIS training camp in a remote undisclosed location in central Syria. That attack killed 28 militants, including “at least four Syrian leaders.”

“The airstrike will disrupt ISIS’ capability to conduct operations against US interests, as well as our allies and partners,” the statement read.

There are some 900 US forces in Syria, along with an undisclosed number of contractors, mostly trying to prevent any comeback by the extremist ISIS group, which swept through Iraq and Syria in 2014, taking control of large swaths of territory.

US forces advise and assist their key allies in northeastern Syria, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, located not far from strategic areas where Iran-backed militant groups are present, including a key border crossing with Iraq.



Lebanese Minister: Diplomatic Efforts for Ceasefire with Israel Underway

People check the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
People check the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
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Lebanese Minister: Diplomatic Efforts for Ceasefire with Israel Underway

People check the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
People check the site of an Israeli airstrike in Beirut's southern suburbs, Sunday, Sept. 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Lebanon's Information Minister Ziad Makary said during a cabinet session on Sunday that diplomatic efforts for a ceasefire with Israel were underway.
"It is certain that the Lebanese government wants a ceasefire, and everyone knows that (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu went to New York based on the premise of a ceasefire, but the decision was made to assassinate Nasrallah," Makary said.
The death of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was confirmed on Saturday, heightening tensions between Lebanon and Israel after months of conflict along their shared border, said Reuters.
"Diplomatic efforts to achieve a ceasefire are ongoing. The Prime Minister is not falling short, but the matter is not that easy," he added.