US Airstrikes Hit Convoy Of IS Leaders, Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi May Have Been Injured

Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi May Have Been Injured In US Airstrike
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Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-appointed leader of the Islamic State (IS), may have been injured in a US airstrike, according to reports.

American ordnance hit a 10-vehicle armed convoy close to Mosul on Saturday. US military spokesman Colonel Patrick Ryder said that that Central Command believed the convoy was carrying top IS leaders, though “Caliph” al-Baghdadi’s presence has not been confirmed.

Local witnesses told Al Arabiya that he was injured in the attack, though this remains unconfirmed.

A US military statement confirmed that trucks had been destroyed, demonstrating “the pressure we continue to place on the IS terrorist network".

Al-Baghdadi was last spotted in Mosul in June, attending a mosque in the city.

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An Iraqi Shiite fighter, loyal to Muslim Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, takes part in military and first aid training on Aug. 19, 2014 in Najaf, central Iraq. (HAIDAR HAMDANI/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:HAIDAR HAMDANI via Getty Images)
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Iraqi forces patrol the town of Jurf al-Sakhar in Babil province after the Iraqi army announced a military operation against Islamic State (IS) militants on Aug. 17, 2014. (Stringer/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) (credit:Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
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Members of the Hezbollah Brigade in Iraq, a Shiite movement supporting Iraqi government forces in the ongoing clashes against Islamic Sate (IS) jihadists in northern Iraq, carry the coffin of a comrade during his funeral procession on Aug. 20, 2014 in Najaf after he was killed in combat south of Baghdad. (HAIDAR HAMDANI/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:HAIDAR HAMDANI via Getty Images)
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A Peshmerga fighter flashes the sign for victory on top of an armored vehicle at the frontline of fighting with Islamic State (IS) militants east of Mosul on Aug. 18, 2014. (AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:AHMAD AL-RUBAYE via Getty Images)
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An Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighter monitors the area from a frontline position in Bashiqa, northeast of Mosul, Iraq on Aug. 16, 2014. (AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:AHMAD AL-RUBAYE via Getty Images)
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Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters monitor the area from a frontline position in Bashiqa, northeast of Mosul, Iraq on Aug. 16, 2014. (AHMAD AL-RUBAYE/AFP/Getty Images) (credit:AHMAD AL-RUBAYE via Getty Images)
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