Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi killed in U.S. raid

[Rogue 9]

Breaking via NPR

Trump Says Islamic State Leader Was Killed In Special Operations Raid

October 27, 20194:42 AM ET

James Doubek, Bobby Allyn

President Trump says that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the founder and leader of the Islamic State, has been killed after a U.S. Special Operations mission targeted him in northwestern Syria. Trump declared that American forces have brought "the world's No. 1 terrorist leader to justice."

In a dangerous and daring night-time raid in "grand style," Trump said Sunday that Baghdadi died at the end of a tunnel when American forces cornered him in Idlib Province in northwestern Syria along the border with Turkey.

Baghdadi, who was with his three young children, ignited a suicide vest, killing himself and his children, Trump said.

Before his death, Trump said Baghdadi was "whimpering and crying and screaming all the way."

Trump said no American troops were killed in the raid.

"The United States has been searching for al-Baghdadi for many years. Capturing or killing al-Baghdadi, has been the top national security priority of my administration," Trump said on Sunday morning.

"He was a sick and depraved man, and now he's gone," Trump said.

War monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says U.S. forces attacked ISIS targets overnight in northwest Syria, leaving at least nine people dead.

Trump hinted that the announcement was coming Saturday evening, tweeting: "Something very big has just happened!"

The White Helmets, a group of volunteer rescue workers who have operated in the Syrian civil war, provided NPR with a video of what the group says was the site of the attack, including rubble surrounding what appeared to be a large bomb crater.

A rescue worker told NPR about 10 bodies were recovered from the site.

The Observatory says eight helicopters and a warplane belonging to U.S.-led coalition forces fighting ISIS struck an area north of the Syrian city of Idlib, close to the Turkish border. Heavy strikes targeted ISIS positions for about two hours, with militants firing back at helicopters. The group says many people were wounded in the attack.

A White Helmets official told NPR a two-story building was targeted in the strike. In the video, the site appears fairly isolated, surrounded by a grove of trees, a few homes and desert mountains.

Abdi, the Kurdish commander, said in an earlier tweet that there was a "Successful& historical operation due to a joint intelligence work with the United States of America." The SDF had been an important ally to U.S. forces fighting ISIS.

Baghdadi has been reported killed several times before, including in announcements by Iraq and Russia. He was believed to be hiding out in the desert near the Syria-Iraq border.

His last apparent video appearance was in April, a month after U.S.-backed forces declared the end of the ISIS "caliphate" and the defeat of the last remaining territory the group held in the Syrian city of Baghouz.

Baghdadi's actual powers of command and control have been greatly diminished since the U.S. and coalition forces routed ISIS from its hold on large swaths of territory in Iraq and Syria, though he has remained symbolically powerful.

At the Kurdish-run al-Hol camp in northeastern Syria a few months ago, some of the Iraqi and Syrian wives of ISIS fighters told NPR they were waiting for Baghdadi to reappear and were confident he would revive the caliphate.

Declaring an "Islamic State"

Baghdadi's most notable public appearance came five years ago, near the height of ISIS' power in Iraq and Syria. He spoke at the Great Mosque of al-Nuri in Mosul in July 2014, declaring himself caliph of the new Islamic State.

At its height, ISIS ruled over 8 million people in territory the size of Great Britain, with its capital in Raqqa, Syria.

The group rose to prominence for its gruesome violence, releasing videos of beheadings and burning people alive. It publicly beheaded, crucified and threw people off of buildings. The group forced thousands of women and children from Iraq's Yazidi minority into slavery amid an ISIS campaign of genocide against the group. Yazidi women and girls were kept as sex slaves for years.

It attracted tens of thousands of foreigners, many from the West, and inspired terror groups around the globe. The group even established a quasi-government, with administrative functions, courts and police.

U.S. forces declared an end to ISIS' self-declared caliphate in March. But experts fear the group's resurgence now that Trump has announced a pullout of U.S. forces from Syria, with dozens of ISIS fighters escaping from Kurdish custody in the last month.

Good riddance to bad rubbish.

[Knife]

Yeah. Won't shed a tear for him. Though, its not like he is the first leader of Isis. Now with hundreds who escaped the SDF with Turkey's advanced, wonder who will take the reins? I also wonder/worry since ISIS originally wanted a Caliphate/nation but has pretty much been crushed, if they'll go underground guerrilla style a-la Al qaeda.

[Eulogy]

Thought only of itself till the very end, where it kills his kids rather htan give them up to the Americans. Bye bye monster who dares wear the skin of a human, you'll have a wonderful time in hell!

Now with hundreds who escaped the SDF with Turkey's advanced, wonder who will take the reins?

Given the stellar example the demon who lead them set, I doubt they'll ever be anything more than a shadow of their former self. Hopefully they'll all end up killing each other off.

[Raw Shark]

Things like this make me wish Hell was real, even though I'd go there, too.

[bilateralrope]

Baghdadi has been reported killed several times before, including in announcements by Iraq and Russia. He was believed to be hiding out in the desert near the Syria-Iraq border.

I wonder if they got him this time.

[ray245]

Yeah. Won't shed a tear for him. Though, its not like he is the first leader of Isis. Now with hundreds who escaped the SDF with Turkey's advanced, wonder who will take the reins? I also wonder/worry since ISIS originally wanted a Caliphate/nation but has pretty much been crushed, if they'll go underground guerrilla style a-la Al qaeda.

They can go underground, but they can't mount the same level of threat they once did when they actually controlled land the size of Britain. An underground guerrilla will not be able to commit genocide.

[Knife]

Yeah. Won't shed a tear for him. Though, its not like he is the first leader of Isis. Now with hundreds who escaped the SDF with Turkey's advanced, wonder who will take the reins? I also wonder/worry since ISIS originally wanted a Caliphate/nation but has pretty much been crushed, if they'll go underground guerrilla style a-la Al qaeda.

They can go underground, but they can't mount the same level of threat they once did when they actually controlled land the size of Britain. An underground guerrilla will not be able to commit genocide.

Al Qaeda would disagree.

[ray245]

Al Qaeda would disagree.

What acts ( aside from 9/11) has Al Qaeda managed to commit on the same scale as Isis?

[Knife]

Al Qaeda would disagree.

What acts ( aside from 9/11) has Al Qaeda managed to commit on the same scale as Isis?

1) Why would we dismiss September 11th?

2) USS Cole bombing.

[ray245]

1) Why would we dismiss September 11th?

2) USS Cole bombing.

Because I am specifically talking about things like genocides?

[Gandalf]

Is there any official account of Baghdadi's death aside from Trump's ramblings? Based on his somewhat Republican attitude with the truth, I'm not inclined to believe too much of what Trump said on how Baghdadi died.

[Rogue 9]

Well, the military agrees it happened, but no thanks to Trump. New York Times

Trump’s Syria Troop Withdrawal Complicated Plans for al-Baghdadi Raid

President Trump’s abrupt decision to pull forces from northern Syria forced the Pentagon to press ahead with a risky night operation that killed the ISIS leader, military officials said.

By Eric Schmitt, Helene Cooper and Julian E. Barnes

Oct. 27, 2019
Updated 7:54 p.m. ET

WASHINGTON — President Trump knew the Central Intelligence Agency and Special Operations commandos were zeroing in on the location for Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Islamic State leader, when he ordered American troops to withdraw from northern Syria earlier this month, intelligence, military and counterterrorism officials said on Sunday.

For months, intelligence officials had kept Mr. Trump apprised of what he had set as a top priority, the hunt for Mr. al-Baghdadi, the world’s most wanted terrorist.

But Mr. Trump’s abrupt withdrawal order three weeks ago disrupted the meticulous planning underway and forced Pentagon officials to speed up the plan for the risky night raid before their ability to control troops, spies and reconnaissance aircraft disappeared with the pullout, the officials said.

Mr. al-Baghdadi’s death in the raid on Saturday, they said, occurred largely in spite of, and not because of, Mr. Trump’s actions.

It is unclear how much Mr. Trump considered the intelligence on Mr. al-Baghdadi’s location when he made the surprise decision to withdraw the American troops during a telephone call on Oct. 6 with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey. What is clear, military officials said, is that it put commanders on the ground under even more pressure to carry out the complicated operation.

More than a half-dozen Pentagon, military, intelligence and counterterrorism officials — along with Mr. Trump, who gave an account during a White House news conference on Sunday — provided a chronology of the raid.

The planning for the raid began this past summer, when the C.I.A. first got surprising information about Mr. al-Baghdadi’s general location in a village deep inside a part of northwestern Syria controlled by rival Qaeda groups. The information came after the arrest and interrogation of one of Mr. al-Baghdadi’s wives and a courier, two American officials said.

Armed with that initial tip, the C.I.A. worked closely with Iraqi and Kurdish intelligence officials in Iraq and Syria to identify more precisely Mr. al-Baghdadi’s whereabouts and to put spies in place to monitor his periodic movements. American officials said the Kurds continued to provide information to the C.I.A. on Mr. al-Baghdadi’s location even after Mr. Trump’s decision to withdraw the American troops left the Syrian Kurds to confront a Turkish offensive alone.

The Syrian and Iraqi Kurds, one official said, provided more intelligence for the raid than any single country.

According to a Syrian engineer who spoke with villagers living near the raid site, Mr. al-Baghdadi had sought shelter in the home of Abu Mohammed Salama, a commander of another extremist group, Hurras al-Din. The commander’s fate in that raid, and the precise nature of his relationship to Mr. al-Baghdadi, are not clear.¶

As the Army’s elite Delta Force commando unit began drawing up and rehearsing plans to conduct the mission to kill or capture the ISIS leader, they knew they faced formidable hurdles. The location was deep inside territory controlled by Al Qaeda. The skies over that part of the country were controlled by Syria and Russia.

The military called off missions at least twice at the last minute.

The final planning for the raid came together over two to three days last week. A senior administration official said that Mr. al-Baghdadi was “about to move.” Military officials determined that they had to go swiftly. If Mr. al-Baghdadi moved again, it would be much harder to track him with the American military pulling out its troops and surveillance assets on the ground in Syria.

By Thursday and then Friday, Defense Secretary Mark T. Esper said on ABC’s “This Week,” Mr. Trump “gave us the green light to proceed.’’

Around midnight Sunday morning in the region — 5 p.m. Saturday in Washington — eight American helicopters, primarily CH-47 Chinooks, took off from a military base near Erbil, Iraq.

Flying low and fast to avoid detection, the helicopters quickly crossed the Syrian border and then flew all the way across Syria itself — a dangerous 70-minute flight in which the helicopters took sporadic groundfire — to the Barisha area just north of Idlib city, in western Syria. Just before landing, the helicopters and other warplanes began firing on a compound of buildings, providing cover for commandos with the Delta Force and their military dogs to descend into a landing zone.

Mr. Trump said that with the helicopter gunships firing from above, the commandos had bypassed the front door, fearing a booby trap, before destroying one of the compound’s walls. That allowed them to rush through and confront a group of ISIS fighters.

The president, along with Mr. Esper, Vice President Mike Pence and Gen. Mark A. Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, watched video of the raid piped into the White House Situation Room from surveillance aircraft orbiting over the battlefield.

The Delta Force commandos, under fire, entered the compound, where they shot and killed a number of people. As the Delta Force team breached the wall with explosives, an Arabic linguist advised children and other noncombatants how to flee, a decision commanders credited with saving 11 of the children Mr. al-Baghdadi had in his compound.

Mr. al-Baghdadi ran into an underground tunnel, with the American commandos in pursuit. Mr. Trump said that the ISIS leader took three children with him, presumably to use as human shields from the American fire. Fearing that Mr. al-Baghdadi was wearing a suicide vest, the commandos dispatched a military dog to subdue Mr. al-Baghdadi, Mr. Trump said.

It was then that the Islamic State leader set off the explosives, killing the three children, Mr. Trump said.

Mr. Esper described the climax of the two-hour ground raid on “This Week” this way: “He’s in a compound, that’s right, with a few other men and women with him and a large number of children. Our special operators have tactics and techniques and procedures they go through to try and call them out. At the end of the day, as the president said, he decided to kill himself and took some small children with him, we believe.”

Mr. Trump was more descriptive. “I got to watch much of it,” he said. Mr. al-Baghdadi, he said, “died after running into a dead-end tunnel, whimpering and crying and screaming all the way.”

Mr. Esper did not repeat the “whimpering” and “crying” assertion made by Mr. Trump. “I don’t have those details,” he said. “The president probably had the opportunity to talk to the commanders on the ground.”

At 7:15 p.m. Washington time on Saturday, the Special Operations commander on the ground reported that Mr. al-Baghdadi had been killed. Five other “enemy combatants” were killed in the compound, the White House said, and “additional enemies were killed in the vicinity.”

Two American service members were slightly wounded, the White House said, but have returned to duty. The American military dog was wounded in Mr. al-Baghdadi’s suicide-vest explosion and was taken away, Mr. Trump said.

After the raid, the commandos removed the 11 children from the site and handed them over to a woman in the area. The military then ordered the destruction of the site, to ensure it would not in the future become a shrine to ISIS, according to a person familiar with the operation.

Altogether, the American troops were on the ground in the compound for around two hours, Mr. Trump said, clearing the buildings of fighters and scooping up information that the president said contained important details on ISIS operations. Mr. Trump said the commandos already had DNA samples from the Islamic State leader, which he said they used to make a quick assessment that they had the right man.

Once all the Americans had piled back into their helicopters and started the return flight to Iraq — using the same route out as they had used coming in, Mr. Trump said — American warplanes bombed the compound to ensure it was physically destroyed, Mr. Esper said. Just after 9 p.m. Washington time Saturday — four hours after the helicopters had taken off — Mr. Trump tweeted, “Something very big has just happened!”

I listened to his announcement live on the radio this morning. It was not at all clear from how he was rambling that he was speaking of military attack dogs; he sounded like he was calling the soldiers involved dogs a couple of sentences after saying Baghdadi died like a dog.

[mr friendly guy]

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news ... us-scholar

UPDATED: Washington Post changes obituary to make Baghdadi 'austere religious scholar' instead of 'terrorist-in-chief'
by Madison Dibble
| October 27, 2019 11:38 AM
| Updated Oct 27, 2019, 02:33 PM

Print this article
The Washington Post changed the headline of its obituary of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi from "terrorist-in-chief" to describe him as an “austere religious scholar.”

U.S. forces killed Baghdadi Saturday after a successful raid on a compound in northern Syria.

While many celebrated the death of the serial rapist and murderer, the Washington Post left many confused by giving him the title of “austere religious scholar at the helm of the Islamic State.”

The Post acknowledged Baghdadi led ISIS with “shocking brutality” but focused much of its obituary on his academic career. “The man who would become the founding leader of the world’s most brutal terrorist group spent his early adult years as an obscure academic, aiming for a quiet life as a professor of Islamic law,” the Post wrote.

The reasons behind the newspaper's decision to tout Baghdadi’s academic career rather than his brutal leadership were unclear. The first version of the story described Baghdadi as the “Islamic State’s terrorist-in-chief,” before it was changed to “austere religious scholar.”

UPDATED: Washington Post changes obituary to make Baghdadi 'austere religious scholar' instead of 'terrorist-in-chief'
by Madison Dibble
| October 27, 2019 11:38 AM
| Updated Oct 27, 2019, 02:33 PM

Print this article
The Washington Post changed the headline of its obituary of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi from "terrorist-in-chief" to describe him as an “austere religious scholar.”

U.S. forces killed Baghdadi Saturday after a successful raid on a compound in northern Syria.

While many celebrated the death of the serial rapist and murderer, the Washington Post left many confused by giving him the title of “austere religious scholar at the helm of the Islamic State.”

The Post acknowledged Baghdadi led ISIS with “shocking brutality” but focused much of its obituary on his academic career. “The man who would become the founding leader of the world’s most brutal terrorist group spent his early adult years as an obscure academic, aiming for a quiet life as a professor of Islamic law,” the Post wrote.

The reasons behind the newspaper's decision to tout Baghdadi’s academic career rather than his brutal leadership were unclear. The first version of the story described Baghdadi as the “Islamic State’s terrorist-in-chief,” before it was changed to “austere religious scholar.”

UPDATED: Washington Post changes obituary to make Baghdadi 'austere religious scholar' instead of 'terrorist-in-chief'
by Madison Dibble
| October 27, 2019 11:38 AM
| Updated Oct 27, 2019, 02:33 PM

Print this article
The Washington Post changed the headline of its obituary of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi from "terrorist-in-chief" to describe him as an “austere religious scholar.”

U.S. forces killed Baghdadi Saturday after a successful raid on a compound in northern Syria.

While many celebrated the death of the serial rapist and murderer, the Washington Post left many confused by giving him the title of “austere religious scholar at the helm of the Islamic State.”

The Post acknowledged Baghdadi led ISIS with “shocking brutality” but focused much of its obituary on his academic career. “The man who would become the founding leader of the world’s most brutal terrorist group spent his early adult years as an obscure academic, aiming for a quiet life as a professor of Islamic law,” the Post wrote.

The reasons behind the newspaper's decision to tout Baghdadi’s academic career rather than his brutal leadership were unclear. The first version of the story described Baghdadi as the “Islamic State’s terrorist-in-chief,” before it was changed to “austere religious scholar.”

In a press conference on Sunday morning, President Trump claimed Baghdadi died a coward.

“He died after running into a dead-end tunnel, whimpering and crying and screaming all the way,” Trump said.

UPDATE: Following backlash from the headline referring to Baghdadi as an "austere religious scholar," the Washington Post changed the headline a third time, calling Baghdadi an "extremist leader."

The headline was then changed again to read: "Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, extremist leader of Islamic State, dies at 48."

UPDATE 2: Vice President of Communications at Washington Post Kristine Coratti Kelly tweeted about the headline, "Regarding our al-Baghdadi obituary, the headline should never have read that way and we changed it quickly."

What the hell is wrong with calling this guy a terrorist?

[Eulogy]

What the hell is wrong with calling this guy a terrorist?

Hell, what's wrong with calling Apoo a monster, demon, and a rabid animal that should've been put down a long time ago? It's not like it's in any position to sue.

The only thing I can think of is that the editors don't want to anger ISIS, but come fucking on, they'd lash out at the newspaper regardless, and then ISIS'd get more American boots up their assholes.

[SpottedKitty]

Is there any official account of Baghdadi's death aside from Trump's ramblings? Based on his somewhat Republican attitude with the truth, I'm not inclined to believe too much of what Trump said on how Baghdadi died.

No kidding, I don't think I've heard anything like that before — his announcement sounded like someone gleefully reciting the plot of a gory horror movie. Come to think of it, does anyone recognise it as the plot of a gory horror movie...?

[PainRack]

Yeah. Won't shed a tear for him. Though, its not like he is the first leader of Isis. Now with hundreds who escaped the SDF with Turkey's advanced, wonder who will take the reins? I also wonder/worry since ISIS originally wanted a Caliphate/nation but has pretty much been crushed, if they'll go underground guerrilla style a-la Al qaeda.

That's the thing.

Abu Bakar resurfaced to go on the internet to proclaim that while the Caliphate territory is gone, the worldwide network and internet is still alive.

The loss of skilled fighters and his death just ensures that they have to go to the second phase of his plan.


Also. We have nothing but Trump word that they did any tests and co firmed it was his remains. He's likely dead but given his incompetence, I awaiting news a year down the road on him resurfacing scarred but alive.

[Rogue 9]

Also. We have nothing but Trump word that they did any tests and co firmed it was his remains. He's likely dead but given his incompetence, I awaiting news a year down the road on him resurfacing scarred but alive.

If he detonated a suicide vest, he's a dead man. Pictures of the site are consistent with an explosion and resulting tunnel collapse.

[bilateralrope]

Also. We have nothing but Trump word that they did any tests and co firmed it was his remains. He's likely dead but given his incompetence, I awaiting news a year down the road on him resurfacing scarred but alive.

If he detonated a suicide vest, he's a dead man. Pictures of the site are consistent with an explosion and resulting tunnel collapse.

I don't think anyone is questioning the fact that somebody detonated a suicide vest. Just questioning the identity of the person who was wearing it.

[Ralin]

What the hell is wrong with calling this guy a terrorist?

Hell, what's wrong with calling Apoo a monster, demon, and a rabid animal that should've been put down a long time ago? It's not like it's in any position to sue.

The only thing I can think of is that the editors don't want to anger ISIS, but come fucking on, they'd lash out at the newspaper regardless, and then ISIS'd get more American boots up their assholes.

I dunno, because most people reading would know more about the murder and rape-slavery stuff than his academic background?

[Rogue 9]

Da'esh confirms he's dead.

ISIS Confirms Baghdadi's Death And Names His Successor

October 31, 20193:24 PM ET

Brakkton Booker

The Islamic State on Thursday confirmed the death of its founder and leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and announced a successor. The propaganda arm of ISIS also confirmed the death of another top ISIS official, its former spokesman.

In an audio message released through its central media operation, the group's new spokesman announced that Baghdadi's successor is a man named Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Quraishi. He is a figure largely unknown outside of ISIS circles and is hailed in the message as "emir of the believers" and "caliph" of the group's alleged caliphate.

In the announcement, both Baghdadi and former ISIS spokesman Abu al-Hassan al-Muhajir were praised as "martyrs."

The ISIS announcement came four days after President Trump told a nationally televised news conference that U.S. forces brought "the world's No. 1 terrorist leader to justice."

It also came less than 24 hours after the head of the U.S. Central Command, Gen. Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie Jr., released video from the raid in northwestern Syria that resulted in the death of Baghdadi and five other ISIS fighters.

McKenzie offered fresh details on the operation against Baghdadi and warned that U.S. officials are bracing for "some form of retribution attack."

"We're under no illusions that [ISIS is] going to go away just because we killed Baghdadi," McKenzie told reporters at a Wednesday briefing.

He added that ISIS may be "a little disjointed" for a period. "They will be dangerous. We suspect they will try some form of retribution attack, and we are postured and prepared for that," McKenzie said.

The U.S.-only assault force was transported for about an hour by helicopter from a staging base in Syria to Idlib province, he said, roughly 4 miles from the border with Turkey. ISIS fighters, who McKenzie said "demonstrated hostile intent against U.S. forces," were eliminated by two airstrikes from supporting U.S. helicopters.

From there, the U.S. forces surrounded Baghdadi's compound, urging those inside to exit. Those who did included 11 children, McKenzie said.

Once the assault was completed, U.S. forces retrieved documents and electronics from the compound, which he described as "substantial."

After departing, the military destroyed the compound in a precision strike to "ensure that it would not be a shrine or otherwise memorable in any way" McKenzie said, adding, "It looks pretty much like a parking lot with large potholes right now."

In all, he said, six ISIS fighters died inside the compound, four women and two men, including Baghdadi.

McKenzie reiterated Trump's recounting of the raid from Sunday, in which Baghdadi detonated a suicide vest, which collapsed the tunnel he retreated into. McKenzie said Baghdadi also killed two young children with him in the tunnel. Officials believe they were both "under 12." Originally, officials said three children had been killed with Baghdadi.

McKenzie also said Baghdadi may have shot at oncoming U.S. forces before detonating his suicide vest.

"We believe that Baghdadi may have actually fired from his hole in his last moments," McKenzie said.

McKenzie said he could not corroborate President Trump's description of Baghdadi "whimpering and crying" as he fled in the tunnel.

"I'm not able to confirm anything else about his last seconds," McKenzie said, adding, "I just can't confirm that one way or another."

McKenzie said the Defense Intelligence Agency was able to confirm identification of Baghdadi "beyond a shadow of a doubt." Using DNA samples retrieved from the tunnel and comparing them with samples taken when the ISIS leader was detained at Iraq's Camp Bucca prison in 2004 "produced a level of certainty that the remains belong to Baghdadi 1 in 104 septillion," said McKenzie.

Baghdadi's remains were buried at sea within 24 hours of his death, according to officials.

More details also emerged about the Belgian Malinois dog injured in the raid. He is a four-year veteran of the Special Operations Command and has participated in nearly 50 combat missions.

The dog was injured by live electrical cables inside the tunnel after Baghdadi blew himself up, Pentagon officials said. He has been returned to duty.

According to a tweet from President Trump on Thursday, the dog, named Conan, "will be leaving the Middle East for the White House sometime next week!"

So much for leaving the dog's identity secret because of his service with a classified unit.

[Raw Shark]

He's a good boy who deserves a treat.