The dreaded terror organisation ISIS has confirmed the death of their chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi who had detonated his suicide vest earlier this week following raid by the US. On Thursday, the Islamic State declared a new leader Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi, who claims that he traces his lineage to Prophet Muhammad’s Quraysh tribe. Baghdadi, too had claimed that he was a descendent of Quraysh tribe and hence a descendent of Prophet Muhammad. However, there was no evidence to back his claim.
The above announcement was reportedly made through the audio released by ISIS’ media arm, al-Furqan Foundation. The ISIS also confirmed death of Abu Hassan al-Mujahir who was ISIS spokesperson since 2016 and a close aide of Baghdadi. Al-Mujahir was killed in a joint operation of US troops and Kurdish forces in Northern Syria, hours after al-Baghdadi detonated his suicide vest. Describing US President Donald Trump as ‘crazy old man’, ISIS spokesperson said that they would avenge the death of their leader.
The new spokesperson, identified as Abu Hamza al-Qurayshi warned America to not rejoice and urged the followers to pledge alliance to the new Caliph. The new Caliph is described as a ‘well-known warrior’ who fought against the US.
According to reports, while the name of the new leader is unknown, the US has identified Hajj Abdullah, a leader ISIS terrorist, as a possible successor. He is believed to a former senior member of Al-Qaeda, the rival terror organisation which was headed by Osama Bin Laden, where he was known as Mohamed Said Abdelrahman al-Malwa.
The ISIS spokesperson has warned the US to beware of vengeance against their nation and ‘their brethren of infidels and apostates’.
