Pentagon claims death of IS leader Abu Sayed in Afghanistan raid

Sayed was killed in airstrike by US drone, Mattis called it victory in terms causing setback for IS

The US forces have killed Abu Sayed, the leader of ISIS-Khorasan, the terror group's Afghanistan affiliate, said a CNN report.

Quoting Chief Pentagon spokesperson Dana White, the CNN report said, "The 'Emir' of ISIS-K was killed in a strike on the group's headquarters in Kunar Province on July 11."

US Navy Captain Bill Salvin, spokesman for US Forces Afghanistan, said Sayed was killed in an airstrike by a US drone. The initial Pentagon statement described Sayed being killed in a "raid".

The CNN reported Secretary of Defence James Mattis as saying that "the death of a leader like Sayed is obviously a victory on our side in terms of setting them back, it's the right direction".

Gen. John Nicholson, Commander, US Forces Afghanistan said in a statement, "This operation is another success in our campaign to defeat ISIS-K in Afghanistan in 2017. Abu Sayed is the third ISIS-K emir we have killed in the last year and we will continue until they are annihilated. There is no safe haven for ISIS-K in Afghanistan."

Hafiz Sayed Khan was killed in July 2016 and another emir Abdul Hasib was killed during a joint US-Afghan commando raid in April.