ISIL leader alive and hiding in Syria, say intelligence officials

state” and for fractures to his legs.

Russia had claimed it killed the reclusive leader — who has not been seen in public since declaring ISIL’s caliphate from the Iraqi city of Mosul in July 2014 — in an air strike during a meeting of senior ISIL commanders near Raqqa on May 28. However it offered no evidence to back up the claim, which was questioned by the U.S.-led coalition against ISIL at the time.

U.S. officials confirmed to CNN Monday that while Baghdadi’s injuries were not considered life-threatening, they did mean he has not been able to command the daily operations of the group. Baghdadi, whose real name is Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim al-Badri, is thought to be communicating with the group’s followers via voice messages sent over encrypted app services. His last public message was in September last year.

In the 46-minute audio, he called on supporters to carry out attacks on the West.

Baghdadi’s whereabouts have been the subject of much speculation since the group’s defeat in all of its former major strongholds in Iraq and Syria.

The 46-year-old was believed to be living near Baaj, west of Mosul, until the U.S.backed Iraqi army offensive on the area last Spring. Since then he is thought to have been moving around villages along the Syria-Iraq border still under ISIL’s control.