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ISIS Chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Dead: Radio Iran

ISIS Chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has succumbed to his injuries according to a report by Radio Iran.

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ISIS Chief and self-proclaimed ‘Caliph’ Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has succumbed to his injuries according to a report by Radio Iran.

Baghdadi was reportedly seriously injured in air strike in March. All India Radio tweeted out the news this morning.

ISIS Chief  Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has succumbed to his injuries according to a report by Radio Iran.

Currently, there is no confirmation from other sources.

The Quint will bring you the story as it unfolds.

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Who was Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi?

1. He was the head of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIS)

2. He is believed to have been born in Samarra, north of Baghdad, in 1971.

3. Reports suggest he was a cleric in a mosque in the city around the time of the US-led invasion in 2003.

4. Some believe he was already a militant jihadist during the rule of Saddam Hussein. Others suggest he was radicalised during the four years he was held at Camp Bucca, a US facility in southern Iraq where many al-Qaeda commanders were detained.

5. He emerged as the leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq, one of the groups that later became ISIS, in 2010, and rose to prominence during the attempted merger with the al-Nusra Front in Syria.

6. He has not sworn allegiance to the leader of the al-Qaeda network, Zawahiri, who has urged ISIS to focus on Iraq and leave Syria to al-Nusra.

ISIS Chief  Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has succumbed to his injuries according to a report by Radio Iran.
A ‘Most Wanted’ poster featuring Baghdadi released by the US government. (Photo: Reuters)

7. Baghdadi and his fighters have openly defied the al-Qaeda chief, leading some commentators to believe he now holds higher prestige among many Islamist militants.

8. In October 2011, the US officially designated Baghdadi as ‘terrorist’ and offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his capture or death.

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The Organisation: ISIS

ISIS is one of the strongest and most radical Islamic terrorist organisations.

Known as the Islamic State (IS) is an Islamic extremist rebel group controlling territory in at least four countries, including Libya, Nigeria, Iraq, Syria with operations or affiliates in Lebanon, Egypt, and other areas of the Middle East, North and West Africa, South and Southeast Asia.

What Is Their Aim?

ISIS exists to spread Islam and Islamic rule across the lands of the classical Abassid Caliphate and further even into the Iberian Peninsula. As such, ISIS shows little understanding of the checkered history of the Caliphate. In this, ISIS tends to be a type of romantic movement but an incredibly brutal one.

Many Sunnis in Iraq (and Syria) feel disenfranchised by either the Alawite rule of Bashar al-Assad in Damascus or the Shi’ite rule of Nouri al-Maliki in Baghdad.

ISIS Chief  Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has succumbed to his injuries according to a report by Radio Iran.
Jordanian protesters carry an effigy of leader of the militant Islamic State Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. (Photo: Reuters) 

Origin

ISIS’ beginnings can be traced to the Second Gulf War in 2003, when the US, along with a coalition of other nations, invaded Iraq and toppled dictator Saddam Hussein.

Amongst the diverse insurgency fighting coalition forces and new Iraqi government was the extremist Islamic group al-Qaida in Iraq.

ISIS was formed out of the al-Qaida affiliate in 2013 and led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Funds

The Islamic State is one of the best-funded terrorist organizations operating today. With private finance allegedly coming from Qatar, Yemen and Saudi Arabia, the Islamic State also controls several oil fields, operates complex extortion schemes throughout its territory and heavily taxes the people living under its rule.

(With inputs from Monica Sarup)

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