The US armed forces announced that they conducted an airstrike in Syria on Sunday that resulted in the death of a high-ranking official of the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group.

It was about “Osama Jamal Muhammad Ibrahim al-Janabi”, who was a “senior official” of IS and “enabling” actions of the organization, the joint command of the US armed forces in charge of the Middle East (CENTCOM, “central Command”).

His death will disrupt the jihadist group’s “ability” to secure “resources” and “carry out terrorist attacks,” CENTCOM added, saying there was “no indication that civilians were harmed” in the bombing.

No other details are given, nor is it specified where exactly the bombing took place.

Members of the American armed forces are stationed in Syria in order, according to Washington, to prevent any regrouping and new reinforcement of IS. They are deployed in areas controlled by the separatist Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) and its allies.

Despite the declaration of “victory” over IS in 2019, after its “caliphate” collapsed in areas of Iraq and Syria, cores of the jihadist organization remain active in both countries.

Observers believe that, in addition to preventing IS from reasserting itself, the purpose of the American presence in Syria is also to prevent Iran from strengthening its own military presence.

According to sources in the American Pentagon, there are currently about 700 American military personnel in Syrian territory. Their development, however, became much more dangerous after the outbreak of war in the Gaza Strip in October. As in Iraq, armed groups close to Iran launch attacks against their positions, often small camps in the desert.