U.S. Central Command forces killed a senior ISIS leader in northwest Syria on June 19, the military confirmed Wednesday, marking the latest precision strike in the ongoing campaign to dismantle what remains of the terrorist group’s network across the region.
The airstrike killed Ali Husayn al-‘Ulaywi, whom CENTCOM described as a senior figure within ISIS. The strike near the village of Deir Hassan, close to the Turkish border, came as the U.S. military simultaneously ramped up lethal operations against narco-trafficking vessels in the Eastern Pacific and Caribbean, a combined tempo that signals a more aggressive posture on multiple fronts.
Fox News Digital reported that CENTCOM announced the strike alongside a statement from its commander, Adm. Brad Cooper, who framed the operation as part of a broader commitment to eliminating ISIS remnants before they can threaten Americans at home or abroad.
CENTCOM’s press release left little ambiguity about the intent behind the operation. The command stated that the “precision strike killed Ali Husayn al-‘Ulaywi and is part of ongoing U.S. efforts to disrupt and eliminate terrorists seeking to attack Americans abroad or the U.S. homeland.”
Adm. Cooper, who testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee in May, issued a direct statement on the operation:
“CENTCOM and our partners remain committed to rooting out remaining remnants of ISIS to ensure its enduring defeat. We will continue to defend the U.S. homeland, our service members, and allies and partners across the region.”
The command also noted that its forces “continue to work alongside regional partners,” though it did not specify which partners were involved in the June 19 strike.
The Associated Press reported that ISIS sleeper cells remain active in Syria despite the group’s territorial defeat in 2019, continuing to claim attacks against the country’s new authorities following the December 2024 fall of Assad family rule. That context matters. The territorial caliphate may be gone, but the network that fed it keeps operating, and the strike on al-‘Ulaywi shows the U.S. military is not content to let those remnants reconstitute in the chaos of post-Assad Syria.
The Syria operation was not the only lethal action U.S. forces conducted in the span of four days. U.S. Southern Command disclosed two separate strikes on vessels allegedly engaged in narco-trafficking, one on June 18 in the Eastern Pacific and another on June 21 in the Caribbean.
The June 18 strike destroyed a vessel transiting known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific. SOUTHCOM’s press release stated that “intelligence confirmed the vessel was transiting along known narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific and was engaged in narco-trafficking operations.” Three males were killed.
Three days later, on June 21, Joint Task Force Southern Spear carried out a second lethal kinetic strike, this time on a vessel in the Caribbean that SOUTHCOM described as “operated by Designated Terrorist Organizations.” Gen. Francis L. Donovan, the SOUTHCOM commander, directed the operation. Two males were killed and six survived. SOUTHCOM stated it “immediately notified U.S. Coast Guard to activate the Search and Rescue system for the survivors.”
The broader campaign against hostile actors on the seas reflects a willingness to use force that previous administrations often hesitated to apply against narco-trafficking networks. SOUTHCOM’s language, describing the vessel operators as “narco-terrorists” tied to “Designated Terrorist Organizations”, draws a direct line between the drug trade and terrorism, a connection that critics of lax border and enforcement policy have long emphasized.
CENTCOM provided al-‘Ulaywi’s name and described him as a “senior ISIS leader,” but offered no further detail about his specific role within the group’s hierarchy. The New York Post confirmed CENTCOM’s account and noted the strike was part of ongoing counterterrorism efforts conducted with regional partners.
Several questions remain unanswered. CENTCOM did not disclose what assets carried out the airstrike, whether manned aircraft, drones, or other platforms. The command also did not say whether the strike was coordinated with Syrian authorities or conducted unilaterally.
On the SOUTHCOM side, the specific “Designated Terrorist Organizations” operating the Caribbean vessel were not named. Nor did the command identify the nationality of those killed or the type of vessels targeted. The status of the six survivors from the June 21 strike, and whether they face prosecution, remains unclear.
The broader Middle East security environment continues to evolve rapidly. The U.S. military has maintained a significant operational tempo in the region, including actions tied to U.S.-Israeli operations against Iranian leadership and the ongoing effort to prevent state and non-state actors from exploiting the post-Assad vacuum in Syria.
Three lethal operations in four days, spanning two combatant commands and three separate theaters, northwest Syria, the Eastern Pacific, and the Caribbean. One senior ISIS leader dead. Five individuals killed on narco-trafficking vessels. Six survivors pulled from the water.
That operational cadence tells a story. CENTCOM and SOUTHCOM are not operating in a defensive crouch. The precision strike in Syria and the kinetic actions against narco-trafficking vessels reflect a military posture built on intelligence-driven targeting and a willingness to act.
For years, the debate over ISIS focused on whether the group’s territorial collapse in 2019 meant the fight was over. It wasn’t. Sleeper cells kept operating. Senior leaders kept planning. And as the broader security landscape in the Middle East has shifted, the remnants of ISIS have tried to exploit every crack.
Al-‘Ulaywi’s death won’t end that threat. But it sends a message that the U.S. military is still watching, still targeting, and still willing to put warheads on foreheads when the intelligence lines up.
The narco-trafficking strikes carry a similar message for a different audience. For too long, drug-running networks operated on the assumption that the open ocean was a sanctuary. SOUTHCOM’s designation of vessel operators as narco-terrorists, and the lethal force that followed, suggests that assumption no longer holds.
When the military treats terrorists like terrorists and drug runners like the threat they are, the results speak plainly enough. The question is whether the rest of the government will keep up.
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