SANAA, Oct. 27 (YPA) – ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in a secret U.S. raid endorsed by President Donald Trump, US media reported on Sunday.
A senior Pentagon official told Newsweek that ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was the target of a covert military operation in Syria’s Idlib province.
The American magazine reported that the U.S. forces carried out a special operation targeting one of its most important targets, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, on a mission approved by President Donald Trump about a week before it occurred.
The official who was briefed on the results of the operation told Newsweek that al-Baghdadi was killed in the raid.
Defense Department informed the White House that they “strongly trust” that the high-value target killed was al-Baghdadi, while further investigation is under way to confirm this.
The senior Pentagon official said al-Baghdadi killed himself by detonating an explosive vest.
According to the magazine, members of a team from the Joint Special Operations Command carried out the operation on Saturday at a high level after receiving operational intelligence, as the site raided by special operations forces has been under surveillance for some time.
Earlier in the day, White House spokesperson Hogan Gidley said President Donald Trump planned to make an “important statement” at the White House at 9:00 a.m. local time (1300 GMT).
Something very big has just happened,” Trump wrote in a tweet earlier.
Something very big has just happened!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 27, 2019
E.M