This is CBS I In The World. I'm John Batch for visiting with Bill Rojillo, a senior fellow

of the foundation for the defensive democracy, keeping the long-war journal.

U.S. adds Al Qaeda leader and Syria to list of global terrorists.

U.S. State Department added Sami Al or Aida, senior leader of Al Qaeda's branch, to its

list.

You also tell me, Bill, that the U.S. or its surrogates are operating in Syria.

What is in Syria right now of great interest to the U.S.? This is an Al Qaeda branch,

is ISIS of considerable weight in Syria on our week combating ISIS?

Yeah, John, it's a Syria remains, as well as Iraq, remains a major problem when you look

at the leadership and the organization of the global jihad. Both the al Qaeda has a minimal

presence at best inside of Iraq, but in Syria, it has thousands of fighters based in North

East and Syria. That Sami Al-Arabi is a nasty individual, a key ideologue, al Qaeda routinely

turns to him in their propaganda to make key points about waging jihad and obligation to fight

jihad against the West and against governments in the Middle East.

And then the Islamic State, while it's lost its physical caliphate in Syria, meaning it doesn't

overtly control territory, control cities like it did up until 2019.

It still has a significant presence. It is operating as an insurgent, so I have a real movement

in both Syria and Iraq, and it probably has tens of thousands of fighters still under its command.

The U.S. military conducted a raid in Syria just last night, and they say they targeted

captured what they call the, this is in quotes, senior ISIS, Syria leader, and operational planner

responsible for planning terror attacks in the Middle East and Europe.

So they've gone after several individuals like this over the last several months, and the U.S.

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