Daesh chief reported dead after militants lose Mosul
July 12, 2017 | 12:00 AM
Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi
July 12, 2017 | 12:00 AM
Last Updated: July 12, 2017 | 12:30 AM
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BEIRUT — Daesh group chief Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi was reported dead on Tuesday, a day after Iraq declared it had driven the militants from their one-time biggest stronghold of Mosul.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a longtime monitor of the country's conflict, said it had information from top Daesh leaders confirming Baghdadi's death.
The report could not be independently verified and Baghdadi has been reported dead several times.
But if confirmed, his death would mark another devastating blow to the terror group after its loss of Mosul, which Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi said Monday had been retaken from Daesh after a grueling months-long campaign.
"Top tier commanders from IS (Daesh) who are present in Deir Ezzor province have confirmed the death of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi to the Observatory," the monitoring group's director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
"We learned of it today but we do not know when he died or how."
Abdel Rahman said Baghdadi "was present in eastern parts of Deir Ezzor province" in recent months, but it was unclear if he died in the area or elsewhere. — AFP
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a longtime monitor of the country's conflict, said it had information from top Daesh leaders confirming Baghdadi's death.
The report could not be independently verified and Baghdadi has been reported dead several times.
But if confirmed, his death would mark another devastating blow to the terror group after its loss of Mosul, which Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi said Monday had been retaken from Daesh after a grueling months-long campaign.
"Top tier commanders from IS (Daesh) who are present in Deir Ezzor province have confirmed the death of Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi to the Observatory," the monitoring group's director Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP.
"We learned of it today but we do not know when he died or how."
Abdel Rahman said Baghdadi "was present in eastern parts of Deir Ezzor province" in recent months, but it was unclear if he died in the area or elsewhere. — AFP
