Islamic State leader hit in airstrike, Iraq military claims

Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was hit by an airstrike while travelling in a convoy in Iraq, the country’s military has claimed.

Iraq’s air force said the militant leader was targeted in the western province of Anbar, near the border with Syria on Sunday. The fate of the militant leader, who has declared himself the leader of an Isis-controlled caliphate in Iraq and Syria, is unknown, the military said.

The whereabouts of Baghdadi have been unknown for long periods.

“Iraqi air forces have bombed the convoy of the terrorist Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi while he was heading to Karabla to attend a meeting with Daesh commanders,” an Iraqi air force statement said, using the Arabic acronym for Isis.

Karabla is on the Euphrates river, barely three miles (5km) from the border with Syria. The military said the air force bombed a location where Baghdadi was planning to meet Islamic State commanders.

"The location of the meeting was also bombed and many of the group's leaders were killed and wounded. Fate of murderer al-Baghdadi is unknown and he was carried away by a vehicle. His health condition is still unclear," the military said.

Iraqi security sources have claimed Baghdadi had been injured or killed in strikes in the past, but those claims have never been verified or were later denied. It was reported in April that he had been injured in a strike but a voice recording claiming to be Baghdadi was released months later in a bid to dispel the rumour.

This time, a statement was released by the “war media cell”, a structure which provides updates on the fight against Isis and speaks for the interior and defence ministries as well as the paramilitary Popular Mobilisation forces.

It said the operation was conducted in coordination with Iraq’s interior ministry intelligence services and the joint operation command centre that includes military advisers from the US-led coalition.