Cairo, 22 October 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Security forces in Iraq have killed the leader of the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group in the country, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said on Tuesday.

In addition to the leader of Islamic State in Iraq, eight other senior figures in the group were killed during a "heroic operation" in the Hamrin Mountains, he said. "There is no place for terrorists in Iraq," al-Sudani said.

According to the Iraqi armed forces, the dead Islamic State leader is Jasim al-Masroui Abu Abdel Qadir. The other dead targets were not named, but would be identified after DNA tests, the army said.

The security forces discovered large quantities of weapons, ammunition and other equipment during the operation, as well as rooms for the production of explosive devices.

Islamic State, which called for a fundamentalist version of Islamic rule, once controlled about 40% of Iraq and about a third of neighbouring Syria. A US-led military alliance began the fight against the group, which is now considered militarily defeated.

However, it has not entirely disappeared. According to the US Central Command, there are currently around 2,500 fighters in the two countries who continue to carry out attacks.

The organization Counter Extremism Project counted around 70 attacks in Syria alone in March this year. Islamic State cells have also regained some of their strength in parts of Africa and South Asia.

MIA file photo