URGENT: ISIL leader al-Baghdadi allegedly survives American drone strike in Nineveh
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of ISIL, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
UPDATE: August 19, 2014 – 18:31: VIDEO: ISIL threatens to attack Americans wherever they are, plunge them into blood in response to air strikes targeting ISIL
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) An intelligence source revealed on Tuesday that the leader of the organization of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, survived a drone air strike that had targeted him by the Iraqi-Syrian border in Nineveh Province, according to a high-level team responsible for monitoring the leader’s movements.
The source said that “the leader of ISIL, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was about to be killed by an air strike near the Iraqi-Syrian border in Nineveh province, Rabia district, while on on his way to the ISIL controlled Syrian city of Raqqa,” noting that “the attack occurred two days ago. It was planned as a joint operation coordinated between Iraqi Security Forces, the Peshmerga and Americans advisers. Drone reconnaissance identified the target accurately.”
The source said that “the military effort focused on targeting sites which have been identified in Nineveh and its environs. These targets were detected via satellite and American overflights,” pointing out that “most of the organization’s leaders have fled to the Syrian city of Raqqa, including al-Baghdadi, his assistant Shaker Wahib and about 15 of the organization’s leaders, including those of Arab, Chechen and European nationality. ”
The source, who asked not to be named, added that “This high-level team of Iraqi Security Forces, Peshmerga and Americans advisers monitor the movements of al-Baghdadi, and a number of his prominent associates using high-precision monitoring equipment affixed to drones,” noting that “the team operates a surveillance base to monitor ISIL movements, particularly in Nineveh and the buffer zone on the Syrian border.”
IraqiNews.com has not been able to independently verify the sources claims.
Correction applied to file photo image.