‘ISIS’ top hacking expert killed in US drone strike’

Junaid Hussain, a top Islamic State jihadist recruiter and an expert British hacker, has been killed in a US drone strike in Syria, according to a media report.

The Birmingham-born Hussain, who adopted the nom de guerre Abu Hussain al-Britani, had been a key figure within Isis’ so-called “Cyber Caliphate” before being killed in the strike in Syria, where he had travelled in 2013.

The US military and intelligence community is in the final stages of confirming that a US drone strike this week killed Hussain, CNN reported.

“We have a high level of confidence he was killed,” a US official was quoted as saying.

Hussain was killed in Raqqa, the self-declared capital of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Raqqa, located in northern Syria, has been treated as a safe haven by ISIS so reaching him in the city adds to the significance of the strike, the report said.

Several US officials said the drone strike was specifically targeting Hussain travelling in a vehicle in Syria after the US got intelligence on where he was and watched him <g data-gr-id="18">to confirm</g> his presence before striking.