Western leaders lauded on Saturday the fall of ISIS terrorist organization in Syria as “immense” and a “historic milestone.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said ISIS’ defeat has removed a source of potential terror attacks against France.
"A significant threat to our country" has been "eliminated", Macron said on Twitter, adding that "the step taken today is immense."
"But the threat remains and the fight against terrorist groups must continue," he said.
France has suffered a wave of militant-inspired terror attacks that have killed 250 people since 2015, when gunmen massacred 12 people at the offices of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris.
US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) formally announced the destruction of ISIS' control of land in eastern Syria but said it would continue its military and security campaigns against militant sleeper cells.
UK's Prime Minister Theresa May said the fall of the last bastion held by ISIS in the village of Baghouz on the Iraqi border marked "a historic milestone" as she paid tribute to British forces and coalition partners fighting the terrorist group.
"The liberation of the last (ISIS)-held territory is a historic milestone that would not have been possible without their commitment, professionalism and courage," she said in a statement.
"We must not lose sight of the threat" ISIS poses, May said, adding "the government remains committed to eradicating their poisonous ideology."
The American envoy to the US-led coalition also hailed the demise of the extremist group.
"This critical milestone in the fight against ISIS delivers a crushing strategic blow and underscores the unwavering commitment of our local partners and the global coalition to defeat ISIS," William Roebuck said at a main staging base for the Kurdish-led SDF.
