U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that its forces, in collaboration with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), captured an ISIS leader who played a key role in aiding the escape of terror group members from a detention facility in Syria. The ISIS leader, identified as Khaled Ahmed al-Dandal, was apprehended on Sunday, just days after five ISIS foreign terrorist fighter detainees broke out from the Raqqah Detention Facility.

According to CENTCOM, two of the escapees were recaptured by the SDF, while three others remain at large. Al-Dandal was identified as a “facilitator” who was instrumental in assisting the escaped ISIS fighters.

Currently, more than 9,000 ISIS detainees are held across over 20 SDF-operated detention facilities in Syria. The military warned that ISIS aims to free its imprisoned members in an effort to reignite the group’s activities. CENTCOM Commander Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla emphasized the threat posed by the large number of detained ISIS fighters, describing them as a “literal and figurative ‘ISIS Army’ in detention.” He added that a mass escape of these fighters would pose a significant danger to the region and beyond.

Gen. Kurilla also highlighted ongoing efforts by the U.S. and the international community to repatriate the ISIS fighters to their countries of origin to mitigate the risk of a resurgence.

This latest development follows a recent U.S. military operation in collaboration with Iraqi Security Forces that resulted in the death of at least 15 ISIS operatives in Western Iraq this past Thursday morning.

The renewed focus on ISIS comes amid rising concerns about the threat posed by terrorist groups, three years after the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. Recent incidents, including an ISIS-linked stabbing attack in Germany and threats against a concert in Austria, have heightened these concerns among security experts.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)