US officials said on Tuesday that a top leader of the so-called ’Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’ (ISIL) takfiri group may have been killed during a US airstrike in Syria.

US officials said on Tuesday that a top leader of the so-called 'Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant' (ISIL) takfiri group may have been killed during a US airstrike in Syria.

Abu Omar al-Shishani, described by Pentagon as "ISIL Minister of War", is one of the most wanted terrorists, whose capture will cost a reward up to $5mn.

Born in 1986 in Gorgia, Shishani was known for being a military advisor close to ISIL leader, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi.

The airstrike was carried out by war jets and unmanned aerial vehicles that targeted Shishani near the Syrian city of Al-Shadadi, and killed 12 other militants, a US official said.

The US Defense Department believes that Shishani was dispatched to Shadadi to reinforce ISIL militants following a series of defeat they suffered last month.

"He was a Georgian national based in Syria, who chaired high ISIL posts, including the Minister of War," Peter Cook, Pentagon spokesman said, adding that Shishani's death will limit the ISIL's ability to coordinate attacks and defend strongholds.

"It will also limit the group's ability to recruit foreign fighters, especially in Chechnya and Caucasus.

Several US officials - asked not to be named - expressed optimism following the airstrike, despite that the killing of Shishani has not been yet confirmed.