Top IS commander al-Shishani 'likely killed' in Syria air strike: US official

Washington: The Islamic State group's battle-tested equivalent of a defence minister has probably died in a US air strike in Syria, a US official said.

The target of the March 4 attack was Omar al-Shishani, a Georgian fighting with Islamic State in Syria, the Pentagon said in a statement yesterday. It said the result of the attack was still being assessed.

But a US official speaking on condition of anonymity said al-Shishani "likely died" in the assault by waves of US warplanes and drones, along with 12 other ISIS fighters.