WASHINGTON — The U.S. military says it has killed an Islamic State operative from Uzbekistan linked to the New Year's Eve attack on an Istanbul nightclub that killed 39 people.

The operative, Abdurakhmon Uzbeki, is alleged to have been a "close associate" of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Central Command spokesman, Col. John Thomas, said Uzbeki was killed in a ground operation April 6 near Mayadan, in eastern Syria.


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Turkish police officers block the road leading to the scene of an attack in Istanbul, early Sunday, Jan. 1, 2017.
Photo Credit: Halit Onur Sandal/AP

Thomas said Uzbeki helped ISIS move foreign fighters and funds, and played a key role in plotting terror attacks. Thomas didn't provide details on Uzbeki's role in the Istanbul attack, in which a gunman opened fire inside a crowded nightclub. Dozens of people were wounded.

Thomas was speaking via teleconference to Pentagon reporters Friday.

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