IS 'number-two man' killed in US raid in Syria

The Islamic State group's second in command has been killed in a US raid in Syria, Pentagon chief Ashton Carter confirmed on Friday, in a move he said would hamper the operational ability of the militants.

"The removal of this [IS] leader will hamper the ability for them to conduct operations inside and outside of Iraq and Syria," Carter told reporters about the death of Abdel Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli, referring to him as Haji Imam and saying he served as finance minister for the group.

The US Justice Department had offered up to $7 million for information leading to the senior IS official.

The IS command structure remains secret and only several other individuals are on a US wanted list.

The killing, if confirmed, would be the second of a top IS commander in weeks.

Earlier this month, the Pentagon said a man known as "Omar the Chechen" was dead after suffering injuries in a US-led coalition strike in northeastern Syria.

The announcement appeared to clear up the fate of the notorious Omar al-Shishani, a week after a US official said the most-wanted militant had been targeted in a 4 March attack on the militant's convoy.

Shishani - the nom de guerre of Tarkhan Batirashvili - was one of the IS leaders most wanted by Washington, which put a $5 million bounty on his head.