U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced today (Wednesday) that the United States killed Ali Husayn al-‘Ulaywi, a senior terrorist in ISIS, in an airstrike in northwestern Syria. In a post published by CENTCOM on X, the command noted that the strike is part of efforts to uproot remaining ISIS elements.
1+“The strike is part of ongoing U.S. efforts to disrupt and eliminate terrorists seeking to attack Americans abroad or the American homeland, as Command forces continue to operate alongside regional partners in the region toward this goal. We remain committed to uprooting the remaining remnants of ISIS to ensure its enduring defeat,” CENTCOM’s statement read.
The American strike comes as ISIS continues to threaten the United States. Just recently, the terror group released a new propaganda message calling on its supporters to carry out attacks during the 2026 World Cup games being held in the United States. According to reports in international media, the message included explicit calls to exploit the large crowd concentrations around stadiums and fan zones to carry out attacks and cause mass panic.
1+In the message published in propaganda channels associated with the organization, it was written that there is “a whole month to track the gatherings,” referring to the millions of fans visiting the tournament cities. The message’s authors encouraged their supporters to act against citizens in Western countries and turn the world’s largest sporting event into a target for attacks.
According to reports, the message also included various scenarios designed to create mass flight and numerous casualties, including through knives and vehicles, alongside calls to carry out actions that would cause panic among crowds attending the games. Despite the severe threats, U.S. authorities clarified that at this stage, no concrete intelligence has been received indicating a planned attack related to the tournament.