Pentagon: US Strikes Degrade Daesh Chemical Weapons Capability

US Department of Defense spokesperson Peter Cook said that the United States has launched airstrikes that destroyed some chemical weapons capabilities of Daesh.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States has launched airstrikes that destroyed some chemical weapons capabilities of the Islamic State (Daesh) and will continue such operations in the future, US Department of Defense spokesperson Peter Cook told reporters on Wednesday.

On Wednesday, CNN reported that the United States has been targeting Daesh chemical weapons locations in Iraq for the last several weeks using the information provided by a captured Daesh operative.

"We feel confident that these actions have played a role in degrading their chemical weapons capability to this point and additional operations will continue," Cook said at a press briefing.

The US media outlet noted that while some officials referred to him as "the key leader," others could not confirm whether he was in charge of the entire Daesh chemical weapons program.

Press reports have identified the detainee as Sleiman Daoud al-Afari, who formerly worked for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein’s chemical weapons program.