Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: ISIS Leader Not Dead — U.S. PsyWar Operation Planted Rumor, Report Says


Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the megalomaniac leader of the terror group ISIS who has declared himself “caliph” of the so-called Islamic State and rightful ruler over the world’s second-largest religion — followed by one of every four people on planet Earth — was reportedly injured and possibly killed in an airstrike Saturday.

But by late Sunday, it appeared that those reports were premature, and in fact, the rumors circulating through online Islamic extremist networks may have been secretly planted by the United States as part of a psychological warfare operation against the ISIS chief.

Iraqi Officials Say That al-Baghdadi Injured In Airstrike

Iraqi officials said Sunday that al-Baghdadi was injured in an airstrike by the U.S. led coalition that supposedly targeted leaders of ISIS in the Iraqi city of Mosul, which has become an ISIS stronghold.

While al-Baghdadi has not been heard from since the Saturday airstrikes, and a top aide and traveling companion to the self-styled “caliph,” Abdul Rahman al-Athaee, did in fact die in the attack, Pentagon officials said they could not confirm that al-Baghdadi was even there.

But speaking on background, one Pentagon official told Fox News that the airstrike was not even intended to hit the top ISIS leadership, and that if Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was actually hurt or killed in the attack, that result would have been a coincidence, albeit a fortunate one for the coalition forces.

Online ISIS Networks Filled With Chatter About Death Of al-Baghdadi

One thing is for sure — online networks used by ISIS members and supporters were ablaze Saturday with reports of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s death or serious injury.

However, a counterterrorism source who anonymously briefed Fox News indicated that the rumors may have originated with a covert U.S. effort to smoke Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi out into the open, forcing him to prove to his followers that he is alive.

Of course, drawing the secretive ISIS leader out in public would make him an easier target. Planting the rumors of his death also served to create massive confusion among ISIS followers, which was evident in online chatter Saturday, the counterterrorism source said.

Iraqi Officials Say Their Reports On al-Baghdadi Have Been Confirmed

“There is no accurate information available,” a senior Iraqi intelligence official told the French Press Agency AFP, when probed for evidence of al-Baghdadi’s death, adding cryptically, “The information is from unofficial sources and was not confirmed until now, and we are working on that.”

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has not actually shown his face in public since July, when he delivered a speech declaring himself the leader of the world’s 1.57 billion Muslims.

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