US and Kurdish soldiers have killed a senior Islamic State group commander in a helicopter raid in north eastern Syria, officials said, while at least 53 civilians were killed in an IS attack in Syria's Homs.
The US military said four troops and a military working dog suffered injuries when the target of the raid — identified as Hamza al-Homsi — triggered an explosion.
"The troops and a working dog are in stable condition, they're being treated at a US medical facility in Iraq," said White House spokesperson John Kirby.
US Central Command spokesman Colonel Joe Buccino said Hamza al-Homsi oversaw the group's network in eastern Syria.
Mr Buccino said the raid was carried out with the Syrian Democratic Forces, an alliance led by Kurdish fighters that has waged a years-long campaign against Islamic State in the country's north.
No SDF fighters or civilians were wounded in the raid, he said. A separate raid also killed an Islamic State assassination cell leader, Mr Buccino added, without going into detail.
Islamic State named a new top leader in December after its former chief killed himself during a raid in southern Syria.
Terrorist attack leaves 53 dead in Homs
At least 53 civilians were killed in an attack in Syria's central desert province of Homs, state media reported on Friday, blaming jihadist militant group Islamic State.
The bodies of all victims taken to the Palmyra state hospital had gunshot wounds to the head, said state news agency SANA citing a report from the hospital.
State media said the victims had been gathering desert truffles when they were attacked. Homs province is controlled by the Syrian government and its allies.
Five people who were wounded were transferred to another hospital. One of the survivors told SANA that IS had burned their cars.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
IS once controlled vast swathes of territory there, losing its hold on land in separate offensives by US-backed fighters, government forces backed by Russia, regional militants and Turkish-sponsored rebels.
It now uses sleeper cells to wage hit-and-run attacks in Syria.
Syrian government troops are spread thin across the country and rely heavily on their allies — including the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah and Iran — to maintain control over their territory.
ABC/wires
