US Forces Capture ISIS Suspect Linked to Prison Break, Hunt for Remaining Escapees

CH-47 Chinook helicopters take off while transporting troops from a remote combat outpost in northeastern Syria on May 24, 2021. John Moore/Getty Images

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces, working in conjunction with Syrian partner forces on Sept. 1, captured a suspected leader of the ISIS terrorist group they believe assisted in a recent prison break at a detention facility in Raqqa.

U.S. forces worked in conjunction with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) to carry out an early morning operation on Sunday to apprehend the ISIS suspect, Khaled Ahmed al-Dandal, CENTCOM announced on Monday.

CENTCOM, which oversees U.S. military operations throughout the Middle East, provided few additional details about the operation to capture al-Dandal.

The U.S. military command said that al-Dandal has assisted numerous ISIS terrorists, including five foreigners who escaped from the Raqqa Detention Facility in northern Syria on Aug. 29. The foreign nationals included two Russians, two Afghans, and one Libyan suspected of traveling to Syria to fight for ISIS.

CENTCOM reported that the SDF had tracked down and recaptured Russian escapee Imam Abdulwahed Akhwan and Libyan escapee Muhammad Noh Muhammad. The search continues for Russian escapee Timor Talbrken Abdash and Afghan escapees Shuab Muhammad Al-Abdli and Atal Khaled Zar.

The operation to capture al-Dandal follows another CENTCOM counter-ISIS operation two days prior in western Iraq. U.S. military command reported that 15 ISIS fighters were killed in the Aug. 30 operation.

A boy holds his mother's hand as they and others wait to be screened after being evacuated out of the last territory held by ISIS terrorists, near Baghouz, Syria, on Feb. 22, 2019. Felipe Dana/AP Photo

At its peak, ISIS asserted claims over broad swathes of Syrian and Iraqi territory. U.S. and coalition forces ousted ISIS from those various land holdings, culminating in the collapse of the group’s last territorial stronghold in al-Baghuz Fawqani, Syria, in March 2019.

Now, many suspected ISIS members and sympathizers remain in coalition, holding facilities and refugee camps throughout Syria. Other elements of the Sunni Islamic terrorrist group still operate in areas of Syria and Iraq, while the group’s offshoots have spread to other areas of Asia and Africa.

ISIS has also claimed responsibility for numerous international attacks since 2019, including the mass shooting and firebombing at the Crocus City Hall concert venue in Moscow on March 22.

U.S. officials have repeatedly warned that ISIS aims for a significant resurgence in Iraq and Syria.

In July, CENTCOM reported that the number of ISIS attacks in Iraq and Syria this year could double that of 2023. Between January and June of this year, CENTCOM logged 153 ISIS-claimed attacks in Iraq and Syria, compared to 121 attacks in those two countries in 2023.

The U.S. military has stepped up efforts to stop a potential ISIS revival.

As of July 16, U.S. forces, SDF fighters, and other regional partners have conducted 196 counter-ISIS missions in 2024. CENTCOM reported that U.S. and partner forces had killed 44 ISIS operatives and captured 166 more during these missions.

CENTCOM said its forces continue to search for about 2,500 more ISIS suspects who remain at large across Iraq and Syria.

U.S. officials remain wary of the thousands of ISIS suspects, family members, and potential sympathizers living in refugee camps and detention facilities throughout Syria. CENTCOM says ISIS aims to free its detained supporters as it pursues its broader resurgence efforts.

“Over 9,000 ISIS detainees remain in over 20 SDF detention facilities in Syria, a literal and figurative ‘ISIS Army’ in detention. If a large number of these ISIS fighters escaped, it would pose an extreme danger to the region and beyond,” CENTCOM commander and U.S. Army Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla said on Monday.

An internal security patrol member stands in front of a convoy of trucks transporting Syrian women and children suspected of being related to the ISIS terrorist group, at the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp in the al-Hasakeh governorate in northeastern Syria on Dec. 21, 2020. Delil Souleiman/AFP via Getty Images

The U.S. government has taken some steps to separate ISIS from its base of potential resurgent support by repatriating foreign nationals held in Syria.

In May, the United States repatriated 11 U.S. nationals from Syria, including five children, as well as the noncitizen relative of one of the repatriated U.S. nationals. The May repatriation effort also included the return of six Canadian citizens, four Dutch citizens, and one Finnish citizen to their home countries.

“We will continue to work with the international community to repatriate these ISIS fighters to their countries of origin for final adjudication,” Kurilla said on Monday.