In the early hours of Wednesday, August 20, the US-led International Coalition against the Islamic State (ISIS), in coordination with Syrian government forces, carried out a joint airdrop operation in the town of Atmeh in Idlib province, northwestern Syria.

Enab Baladi’s correspondent in Idlib reported that the security operation began at around 2:30 a.m. and lasted for about two hours. It resulted in the killing of an ISIS commander of Iraqi nationality.

Five other individuals were arrested during the raid and handed over to the Internal Security Forces in Atmeh.

Enab Baladi attempted to contact the media office of the Ministry of Interior for details about the operation and confirmation of the slain commander’s identity, as well as information about those detained, but received no response at the time of publication.

The correspondent added that Atmeh has not witnessed any recent security tensions in past months, as the Internal Security Forces maintain full control over the area.

As of publication, neither the Syrian Ministry of Interior nor US Central Command (CENTCOM) had issued an official statement about the raid.

Previous joint operations

The Atmeh raid marks the second joint operation between the Coalition and the Syrian government, following one conducted on July 25 in the city of al-Bab in eastern Aleppo province, which resulted in the killing of several ISIS members.

CENTCOM announced via X (formerly Twitter) that the al-Bab strike killed senior ISIS commander Dhiya’ Zawba Muslih al-Hardani, along with his two sons, Abdullah and Abdulrahman.

According to CENTCOM, those targeted posed a threat to US and Coalition forces as well as to the new Syrian government.

The statement clarified that the targeted site also housed three women and three children, none of whom were harmed.

US CENTCOM Commander General Michael Erik Kurilla stressed that US forces will continue to pursue ISIS operatives “wherever they are.”

In June, CENTCOM had announced that it carried out six operations against ISIS in Syria and Iraq in 2025—five in Iraq and one in Syria.

It added that the operations, conducted between May 21 and 27, killed two ISIS members, captured two others (including a commander), and led to the seizure of multiple weapons.