Al-Baghdadi Perhaps Killed in Airstrike

Various reports from Iraq say that ISIS leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, may have been critically wounded or perhaps killed in a coalition airstrike, either on the border town of al-Qaim, just a few miles from the Syrian border, or near Mosul.

Iraqi officials told The New York Times that a strike in al-Qaim, a town on the Syrian border in Anbar province, hit a meeting of ISIS leaders,killing many-including possibly two regional governors. But another airstrike on a leadership convoy near the northern town of Mosul, 180 miles away, was confirmed by the US Central Command on Shabbos.

It was unclear if Bahgdadi had been among those targeted in that strike.

“I can confirm that coalition aircraft did conduct a series of airstrikes yesterday evening in Iraq against what was assessed to be a gathering of ISIL leaders near Mosul, destroying a vehicle convoy consisting of 10 ISIL armed trucks,” said CENTCOM spokesman Col. Patrick Ryder, using another acronym for ISIS.

He did not confirm a strike in al-Qaim. If Baghdadi were killed, it would be a major propaganda victory for the United States and its allies, who have been waging a weeks-long airwar against the rampaging militants. Read more at The New York Times.

{Andy Heller-Matzav.com Newscenter}