'ISIL's No.2 leader killed in US airstrike in Iraq'
12:08, 14/10/2015, WednesdayU: Update: 12:22, 14/10/2015, Wednesday
Yeni Şafak
Mutaz, ISIL's second-in-command, was killed in the U.S. strike in Mosul while in his car
The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant's (ISIL) deputy leader was killed in Iraq by a U.S. airstrike in August, the extremist group confirmed.
In a voicemail he released, Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, the spokesman of ISIL, said Fadhil Ahmad al-Hayali, known as Hajji Mutaz, died in the Aug. 18 airstrike carried out by U.S. fighter jets near Mosul.
The U.S. National Security Council earlier announced on Aug. 22 that al-Hayali was traveling in Mosul when he was targeted in his car.
His death has had an adverse impact on the operations of the armed group in Mosul, because al-Hayali was serving as the second in command of the extremist group.
The leader who was second in charge was coordinating the transportation of weapons, explosives and people between Iraq and Syria, which are largely under ISIL control since last year, according to reports.
Mutaz was known as the senior deputy of ISIL's no.1 man, Abu Baqr al-Baghdadi, who was reportedly critically injured in another strike by the U.S.-led coalition in March 2015.