Islamic State says top spokesman Abu Muhammed al-Adnani killed

Longtime Islamic State spokesman Abu Muhammed al-Adnani was killed in Aleppo, Syria, the Amaq News Agency, the media arm of the terror group, said Tuesday.

He was "martyred while surveying the operations to repel the military campaigns against Aleppo," Amaq said in a statement.

Amaq vowed revenge against the “filthy cowards in the sect of disbelief.” It said a generation raised in Islamic State-held territory would seek revenge.

An airstrike by the U.S.-led coalition on Tuesday in Syria targeted Abu Muhammad Al-Adnani, ISIL’s chief spokesman and coordinator of attacks around the world, Pentagon Press Secretary Peter Cook said in a statement Tuesday night. It was unclear if he had been killed.

“We are still assessing the results of the strike, but Al-Adnani's removal from the battlefield would mark another significant blow to ISIL,” Cook said. “Al-Adnani, has served as principal architect of ISIL's external operations and as ISIL's chief spokesman. He has coordinated the movement of ISIL fighters, directly encouraged lone-wolf attacks on civilians and members of the military and actively recruited new ISIL members.”

Adnani, 39, had appeared in Islamic State media since 2011 and was one of its primary leaders to call for "lone wolf" attacks, the SITE Intelligence Group reported.

Adnani, a founding member of the Islamic State, oversaw a recruiting and training operation that led to attacks on Europe, according to multiple media outlets. He called for attacks this year in Western countries, telling Muslims in France to attack “the filthy French” in any way they could, including “crush them with your car,” the Associated Press reported.

If his death is confirmed by the United States or other nations, it would be the latest blow to the terrorist group.

The Islamic State, also known as ISIL or ISIS, took control of a large swath of Iraq and Syria in 2014, but it lost some ground in recent months. The group's battlefield struggles come as lone wolf attacks have flourished, including those in San Bernardino, Calif., and in Orlando.

The U.S. State Department designated Adnani a Specially Designated Global Terrorist on Aug. 18, 2014.

Contributing: Tom Vanden Brook