Senior Isil operative killed in Aleppo

The group's news outlet, Amaq, reported Al-Adnani's death on Tuesday, without specifying who was responsible.

Al-Adnani's death was first reported Tuesday by the Islamic State, also called ISIS or ISIL.

Amaq did not say how Adnani was killed. Aleppo is the name of the northern Syrian city that has been the site of years of fierce battles, and also of the province surrounding it. Al-Adnani's death wasn't immediately confirmed by the USA, which often takes days or weeks to gather and evaluate evidence before making such a judgment. This came in a statement that announced that the US Department of State's Rewards for Justice Programme is offering rewards for information on four key leaders of the terrorist group ISIS.

In Washington, the Pentagon said US-led coalition forces had targeted Adnani in an air strike in Syria´s Aleppo province on Tuesday but did not immediately confirm his death. It was not clear whether that leader was Adnani. "I wouldn't be surprised if we saw some plots in Western capitals", he said.

A USA defense official dismissed that assertion. Fighting between rebel groups and Syrian troops backed by Russian airstrikes has cut off hundreds of thousands of civilians in Aleppo from humanitarian relief.

Al-Adnani is the second high-ranking Islamic State official to be killed in recent months after Tarkhan Tayumurazovich Batirashvili, also known as Abu Umar al-Shishani, was killed by a USA airstrike in March.

Adnani, a Syrian born in 1977, was one of ISIS' most recognised leaders. "The war of words between al-Qaida and ISIS, the justification for war on the West - that was all Adnani's doing".

"After a journey filled with sacrifice and fight against non-believers, the Syrian Gallant knight, Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, joined the convoy of martyr leaders". He crossed the border and joined al-Qaeda in Iraq, a precursor to ISIS, after the 2003 US -led invasion.

The Islamic State, in particular, has seemed built around the premise of maximum flexibility in the face of attacks by hostile nations and competitors for territory. He crossed the border and joined al Qaeda in Iraq, a precursor to Islamic State, after the 2003 USA -led invasion.

Regardless of who killed Al-Adnani, his death would be a blow to the Islamic State.

Adnani was heard in a audio message in May urging Muslims to carry out strikes in the West.

Earlier this year, he called for attacks during Ramadan, with followers carrying out attacks including the Orlando nightclub shooting, the truck attack in the French city of Nice and a massive suicide bombing in Baghdad. "Get prepared, be ready.to make it a month of calamity everywhere for the non-believers. especially for the fighters and supporters of the caliphate in Europe and America".

"This is someone who has been a senior leader in ISIL", Cook said.

The US had been actively been looking for Adnani for some time, given his prominent role within the organisation.