BEIRUT, Nov 30 (AFP) - The Islamic State militant group said on Wednesday (Nov 30) that its leader Abu Hasan al-Hashimi al-Qurashi has been killed in battle and announced a replacement to head up its remaining sleeper cells.

A spokesman for IS said Hashimi, an Iraqi, was killed "in combat with enemies of God", without elaborating on the date or circumstances of his death.

The US military's Central Command (CENTCOM) said Hashimi had been killed in an operation carried out by rebels of the Free Syrian Army in Daraa province in southern Syria in mid-October.

Daraa province is mostly controlled by Syrian government forces and rebels who have reached understandings with the regime. In mid-October, Damascus said it had launched a joint operation against IS with former rebels in the south of the province.

Using an alternative acronym for IS, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said: "We welcome the announcement that another leader from ISIS is no longer walking in the face of the Earth."

Speaking in an audio message, the IS spokesman said Abu al-Hussein al-Husseini al-Qurashi had been named as the group's new leader.

Qurashi refers to a tribe of the Prophet Mohammed, from whom IS leaders must claim descent.