<p>Two "high-value" jihadists held by Syrian Kurds have been taken into US custody and moved out of the country, a defence official said Wednesday, as reports identified them as notorious British fighters dubbed "The Beatles."</p>.<p>Turkey has launched an assault on the Syrian Kurdish forces -- with which the US partnered to combat the Islamic State group -- sparking fears that the offensive could lead to captured fighters they held escaping and reconstituting the group.</p>.<p>"I can confirm that we've taken custody of two high-value ISIS individuals from the SDF," the defence official said on condition of anonymity, referring to the Islamic State group and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that held the captured jihadists.</p>.<p>"They have been moved out of Syria and are in a secure location," the official said, without identifying where.</p>.<p>"They are being held in military custody pursuant to the law of war."</p>.<p>US media reports identified the two as part of an extremely violent all-British four-man cell that kidnapped and tortured foreigners, including journalists, at the height of Islamic State group's power in Syria and Iraq.</p>.<p>One other was killed in a drone strike and the fourth is imprisoned on terror charges in Turkey.</p>.<p>Their cell is accused of abducting and decapitating around 20 hostages including American journalist James Foley, who was beheaded in 2012.</p>.<p>US President Donald Trump had earlier said that the US was taking steps to prevent the potential escape of particularly dangerous Islamic State group fighters amid the Turkish offensive.</p>.<p>"We are taking some of the most dangerous ISIS fighters out and we're putting them in different locations where it's secure," Trump said at the White House.</p>.<p>"We have taken a certain number of ISIS fighters who are particularly bad and we've wanted to make sure nothing happened to them with respect to getting out," he said.</p>.<p>The move addressed one of the most worrisome issues of Trump's green light to Turkey to invade Syria, where the Kurds, a longtime US battlefield partner, are viewed as a terror threat by Ankara, a NATO ally of Washington.</p>.<p>The SDF have been holding prisoner some 10,000 captured Islamic State group fighters.</p>.<p>The SDF-held fighters include around 2,000 of foreign nationality, many of them from European countries that have refused to take them back.</p>.<p>Trump said the Kurds are still guarding many of the Islamic State group militants, but also said Turkey will be responsible for them.</p>.<p>"If the Kurds don't watch, Turkey will watch. They don't want those people out any more than we do," he said.</p>
<p>Two "high-value" jihadists held by Syrian Kurds have been taken into US custody and moved out of the country, a defence official said Wednesday, as reports identified them as notorious British fighters dubbed "The Beatles."</p>.<p>Turkey has launched an assault on the Syrian Kurdish forces -- with which the US partnered to combat the Islamic State group -- sparking fears that the offensive could lead to captured fighters they held escaping and reconstituting the group.</p>.<p>"I can confirm that we've taken custody of two high-value ISIS individuals from the SDF," the defence official said on condition of anonymity, referring to the Islamic State group and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces that held the captured jihadists.</p>.<p>"They have been moved out of Syria and are in a secure location," the official said, without identifying where.</p>.<p>"They are being held in military custody pursuant to the law of war."</p>.<p>US media reports identified the two as part of an extremely violent all-British four-man cell that kidnapped and tortured foreigners, including journalists, at the height of Islamic State group's power in Syria and Iraq.</p>.<p>One other was killed in a drone strike and the fourth is imprisoned on terror charges in Turkey.</p>.<p>Their cell is accused of abducting and decapitating around 20 hostages including American journalist James Foley, who was beheaded in 2012.</p>.<p>US President Donald Trump had earlier said that the US was taking steps to prevent the potential escape of particularly dangerous Islamic State group fighters amid the Turkish offensive.</p>.<p>"We are taking some of the most dangerous ISIS fighters out and we're putting them in different locations where it's secure," Trump said at the White House.</p>.<p>"We have taken a certain number of ISIS fighters who are particularly bad and we've wanted to make sure nothing happened to them with respect to getting out," he said.</p>.<p>The move addressed one of the most worrisome issues of Trump's green light to Turkey to invade Syria, where the Kurds, a longtime US battlefield partner, are viewed as a terror threat by Ankara, a NATO ally of Washington.</p>.<p>The SDF have been holding prisoner some 10,000 captured Islamic State group fighters.</p>.<p>The SDF-held fighters include around 2,000 of foreign nationality, many of them from European countries that have refused to take them back.</p>.<p>Trump said the Kurds are still guarding many of the Islamic State group militants, but also said Turkey will be responsible for them.</p>.<p>"If the Kurds don't watch, Turkey will watch. They don't want those people out any more than we do," he said.</p>