‘World will not miss’ IS leader who blew himself up in tunnel
THE DEFENCE Secretary has claimed that the “world will not miss” Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the so-called Islamic State, who blew himself up after a US military operation in Syria.
President Donald Trump confirmed yesterday that al-Baghdadi ran into a dead-end tunnel and ignited an explosive vest, killing himself and three of his young children after being surrounded by specialist forces.
The hunt for Baghdadi had intensified over the past month.
Speaking in the White House’s Diplomatic Room, Mr Trump said the IS figurehead died as “a coward, running and crying”.
Defence Secretary Ben Wallace welcomed the US action against what was arguably the world’s most wanted man.
“Isis is one of the most murderous terrorist organisations of our generation,” he said.
“Their leaders have twisted Islam to groom thousands of people into joining their evil cause.
“I welcome the action that has been taken. The world will not miss al-Baghdadi.”
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab added that it was important not to “allow Daesh to glorify” its dead leader.
He said: “Following the death of Daesh’s leader, we must not allow Daesh to glorify someone who actioned such inhumane and abhorrent criminal acts.
“The UK will continue to support efforts to defeat Daesh.”
Mr Trump watched the raid on al-Baghdadi’s home from the White House.
He said viewing it was “as though you were watching a movie”, according to the foreign news agency, Associated Press.
The President revealed that the IS leader had been under surveillance for several weeks.
He said that during the raid, US forces “flew low and fast, and were met with gunfire at points”.
No American personnel were lost in the encounter, he added.
Tackling al-Baghdadi’s was one of the Trump administration’s top national security priorities.
The announcement came as the President has been on the receiving end of global criticism following the recent pullback of US troops from north-eastern Syria.
Critics fear the move will allow the militant group to regain strength after it had lost vast stretches of territory it had once controlled.
THE SHADOWY leader of socalled Islamic State, who presided over its global jihad and became arguably the world’s most wanted man, is dead after being targeted by a US military raid in Syria, President Donald Trump said.
“Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead,” Mr Trump announced at the White House, saying the US had “brought the world’s number one terrorist leader to justice”.
Addressing the nation from the White House, the president described a daring airborne raid by American special operations forces in Syria’s north-western Idlib province and said they flew over heavily militarised territory controlled by multiple nations and forces.
No US troops were killed or injured in the raid, Mr Trump said.
As US forces bore down on alBaghdadi, he fled into a “deadend” tunnel with three of his children, Mr Trump said, and detonated a suicide vest.
“He was a sick and depraved man, and now he’s gone,” the president said. “He died like a dog, he died like a coward.”
Al-Baghdadi’s identity was positively confirmed by a DNA test conducted onsite, Mr Trump said.
Late on Saturday, he had teased a major announcement, tweeting: “Something very big has just happened!”
By the morning, he was thanking Russia, Turkey, Syria and Iraq, as well as Kurdish fighters in Syria for their support.
The killing of al-Baghdadi marks a significant foreign policy success for Mr Trump, coming at one of the lowest points in his presidency as he is mired in impeachment proceedings and facing widespread Republican condemnation for his Syria policy.
The recent pullback of US troops he ordered from north
eastern Syria raised a storm of bipartisan criticism in Washington that the militant group could regain strength after it had lost vast stretches of territory it had once controlled.
Mr Trump said the troop pullout “had nothing to do with this”.
Planning for the operation began two weeks ago, Mr Trump said, after the US gained unspecified intelligence on al-Baghdadi’s whereabouts. Eight military helicopters flew for more than an hour over territory controlled by Russian and Syrian forces, Mr Trump said, before landing under gunfire at the compound. Mr Trump described the raid and took questions from reporters for more than 45 minutes.
He said US forces breached the walls of the building because the doors were booby-trapped and chased al-Baghdadi into the tunnel, which partially collapsed after al-Baghdadi detonated the suicide vest.