US military captures two ISIS members in Syria

Central Command calls operation 'a significant gain for the region'

US troops and Syrian Democratic Forces in a joint exercise at Dayrik, north-east Syria. EPA

US forces have captured two ISIS members in an air and ground assault in eastern Syria, the US military's Central Command has said.

The raid took place on Saturday, Centcom spokesman Col Joe Buccino said on Sunday.

He said one civilian received “minor injuries” during the attack and was treated at a nearby medical facility before being released back to his family.

Centcom described the militants as facilitators that included a logistics specialist and an “associate” of the extremist group.

The Syrian Democratic Forces were involved in the planning and ground operations for the capture, Col Buccino told The National.

He declined to provide further details on those captured “because of the manner in which [Centcom] gathered intelligence” for the operation.

“This is a significant gain for the region and this operation will set back ISIS in Syria,” Col Buccino said.

After the extremists lost their last scraps of territory following a military onslaught backed by an international coalition in March 2019, ISIS remnants in Syria mostly retreated to desert hideouts in the country's east.

They have since used such hideouts to ambush Kurdish-led forces and Syrian government troops, while continuing to mount attacks in Iraq.

On Friday, Centcom said a drone attack had hit a US-led coalition base in southern Syria. A war monitoring group said it had been launched by Iran-backed groups.