IS finance chief confirmed killed in air strike

Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren confirmed in a statement on Thursday the death of Abu Saleh and two other senior militants of ISIS in the recent U.S.-led airstrikes in Iraq.

In London, the US Treasury’s acting under secretary for terrorism and financial crimes, Adam Szubin, said Isis derives most of its funding from economic activity in the territory it controls.

Not much is known about Abu Salah, whose real name is Muafaq Mustafa Mohammed al-Karmoush, but his name was discovered on a leadership chart by Iraqi special forces during a raid in the summer of 2014.

The latest jihadist to get killed is Abu Salah, who is reportedly the Islamic State’s Chief of Finance.

They were identified as Abu Mariam, an enforcer and senior leader in the IS group’s extortion networks, and Abu Waqman al-Tunis, who Warren said coordinated the group’s transfer of people, weapons and information.

Recently, U.S. defense officials estimated that Islamic State was earning about $47 million per month from oil sales prior to October.

Warren said it was too early to tell what the impact of the strikes had been and that it was similar to a boxing match.

Besieged ISIS militants in the Iraqi city of Ramadi destroyed a lock on the Euphrates River that served as a bridge as government forces on Wednesday sought to cement their gains around the militant-held city west of Baghdad. Iraqi Maj Gen. Ismail al-Mahlawi, head of military operations in Anbar province, said Thursday there are approximately 300 Islamic State fighters trapped in the center of Ramadi, which lies on the Euphrates River.