Four US troops, working dog wounded in raid that killed IS official in Syria

Four US troops were wounded during a helicopter raid that killed an Islamic State (IS) group leader in northeast Syria, US officials said on Friday.

The US military said the troops and a military working dog suffered the injuries when the target of the raid – identified as Hamza Al-Homsi – triggered an explosion.

"The troops and a working dog are in [a] 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.

Buccino said the raid was carried out with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance led by Kurdish fighters that has waged a years-long campaign against IS in the country's north.

No SDF fighters or civilians were wounded in the raid, he said.

A separate raid also killed an IS assassination cell leader, Buccino added, without going into detail.

IS named a new top leader in December after its former chief killed himself during a raid in southern Syria.

(Reuters)