Unknown jihadist replaces Baghdadi as Islamic State caliph

Islamic State has announced an unknown jihadist will be its new leader as it acknowledged for the first time the death of its founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in a raid by United States special forces last weekend.

Five days after Baghdadi blew himself up in his hideout in northwest Syria, an official statement from the Islamic State said he would be replaced by Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi.

Little is known about the man now in charge of the world’s most infamous terrorist group, but the statement described him as ‘‘an emir of war’’ with experience of fighting against the US.

It also gave his title as the group’s second ‘‘caliph’’, indicating the diminished jihadist group still considers itself a caliphate despite having lost all of its territory in Iraq and Syria.

The new leader’s nom de guerre suggests he is claiming to be a member of the Qurayshi clan, the same clan as the Prophet Mohammed. IS believes membership of the clan is a prerequisite for a caliph and Baghdadi also claimed to be a Qurayshi.

‘‘As things stand this new leader is an entirely unknown quantity,’’ said Charlie

Winter, senior research fellow at the International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation. ‘‘The nom de guerre is about as vague as it can possibly be, but that doesn’t mean much given that when Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi came on the scene in 2010 he was similarly unknown.’’

The group’s new spokesman warned the US not to rejoice over Baghdadi’s death because the jihadists retained the ability to carry out attacks.