|
|
|
| Quote: |
| Washington (CNN)The U.S. military and intelligence community is in the final stages of confirming that a U.S. drone strike this week killed Junaid Hussain, who is linked to the Garland, Texas, cartoon contest attack, CNN has learned. "We have a high level of confidence he was killed," one U.S. official told CNN Wednesday, referring to the British-born ISIS recruiter and hacker that the U.S. believes was heavily involved in inspiring attacks. CNN has learned that Hussain was killed in Raqqa, the self-declared capital of ISIS. Raqqa, located in northern Syria, has been treated as a safe haven by ISIS, some U.S. officials pointed out, so reaching him in the city adds to the significance of the strike. Several U.S. officials told CNN that the drone strike was specifically targeting Hussain traveling in a vehicle in Syria after the U.S. got intelligence on where he was and watched him to confirm his presence before striking. Subsequent assessments indicated that Hussain had stepped outside when he was hit by a missile from a U.S. drone. |
