(CNN) The Pentagon said Friday that it had killed ISIS’ number two leader, Abd al-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli.
Analysts believe al-Qaduli would have been expected to take control of the day-to-day running of ISIS if its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was killed or incapacitated.
Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced the death at a press conference.
“We are systematically eliminating ISIL’s cabinet,” Carter said, adding it was “the second senior ISIL leader we’ve successfully targeted this month.”
A U.S. official told CNN that al-Qaduli was involved in overseeing the terrorist group’s finances.
This is not the first time al-Qaduli has been reported killed. In July, the Iraqi Defense Ministry claimed a coalition air strike had killed him in Tal Afar in northern Iraq.
At the time U.S. Central Command, which oversees military operations in the region, debunked the claim saying it had “no information to corroborate” that ISIS’ second-in-command had been killed.
The U.S. Treasury designated al-Qaduli “a specially designated global terrorist” in 2014. He also goes by 12 aliases including Hajji Iman, according to the Treasury.
