Not just Iraq, Syria as well. SDF is on the doorstep of Raqqa, the 'caliphate's capital'.
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Russia says they killed ISIS leader
- Thread starter BigJonsson
- Start date
Not just Iraq, Syria as well. SDF is on the doorstep of Raqqa, the 'caliphate's capital'.
velociraptor
Junior Member
I think it's time for western intelligence agencies to improvise.
I imagine they could easily send spies to infiltrate ISIS. Gain their trust, take a few explosives with them and inflict as much damage as possible.
I imagine they could easily send spies to infiltrate ISIS. Gain their trust, take a few explosives with them and inflict as much damage as possible.
I'm a genius
GasProblem
Member
Good if true.
Hope it doesn't make some IS supporters want to join him and be even more bold with attacks.
Hope it doesn't make some IS supporters want to join him and be even more bold with attacks.
Golden_Pigeon
Banned
Wassim Nasr (french specialist on ISIS and other similar groups) tweet:
"If it was true, ISIS would have announced it, the death of a jihadist leader is often promoted".
https://twitter.com/SimNasr/status/875629175008149512
Also "Since 2006, ISIS (back then, Al Qaida in Irak) always annunced the death of their leaders and was proud of it."
He also add that when the Talibans have hidden the death of Mullah Omar, it really hit their public image (among potential jihadi candidates).
"If it was true, ISIS would have announced it, the death of a jihadist leader is often promoted".
https://twitter.com/SimNasr/status/875629175008149512
Also "Since 2006, ISIS (back then, Al Qaida in Irak) always annunced the death of their leaders and was proud of it."
He also add that when the Talibans have hidden the death of Mullah Omar, it really hit their public image (among potential jihadi candidates).
BrassDragon
Member
Fair point but this goes the other way as well: they love rubbing our faces in it when we miss our targets, defiantly popping up somewhere else.
If their leadership really was hit, their propaganda wing may not be sure themselves.
Don't really believe it tbh.
The skeptic in me says this is an attempt to portray Russia as heroes for taking out a terrorist leader so Trump has something to point to and demand the sanctions be removed while using it as leverage against congress to convince them to allow it past the recent powers that got passed.
The skeptic in me says this is an attempt to portray Russia as heroes for taking out a terrorist leader so Trump has something to point to and demand the sanctions be removed while using it as leverage against congress to convince them to allow it past the recent powers that got passed.
BREAKING: US-led anti-Islamic State group coalition says it cannot confirm reports IS leader was killed in airstrike.
— The Associated Press‏ (@AP) June 16, 2017
— The Associated Press‏ (@AP) June 16, 2017
Bit from NYT: Russian Military Says It Might Have Killed ISIS Leader
Good question. Timing might just be a coincidence.
All the articles I've seen say that they might have killed him and that they're just not sure. That the guy might have been there. Hardly a celebratory pat on their own shoulders.
Could be. Probably isn't.
Golden_Pigeon
Banned
Let's just recall to everyone what Russian state media are.
They are the one saying that everybody and his grandmother is funding ISIS. They are the one that spread the bs about ISIS being directed by a Mossad agent (at least in their spanish version of RT).
So saying that it's highly unlikely is an understatement.
They are the one saying that everybody and his grandmother is funding ISIS. They are the one that spread the bs about ISIS being directed by a Mossad agent (at least in their spanish version of RT).
So saying that it's highly unlikely is an understatement.
I don't believe anyone claimed to have killed al-Baghdadi. They just throw "ISIS Leader" into the headline all the time, because it sounds better.
Dubbedinenglish
Banned
I'm more surprised they hit ISIS.
Second it's really curious timing that something that will take weeks to verify gets announced right before a new sanctions package that Trump can't unilaterally lift comes to his desk.
🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
Second it's really curious timing that something that will take weeks to verify gets announced right before a new sanctions package that Trump can't unilaterally lift comes to his desk.
🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
Golden_Pigeon
Banned
No country claimed it is what I mean. No country has ever claimed to have killed him.
Reports about him being wounded, about him being there where the bombs hit and whatnot are not really claims that they killed him. That's what I mean.
This new report is the closest thing we've ever gotten and I cannot find the source either. I want to know wether Russia says they killed him or if they said they believe he might have been there. The official quotes all say the latter, but AP makes it sound like it's the former.
This sentence ("The Russian Defense Ministry said Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in a Russian strike in late May along with other senior group commanders.") is the one I cannot find anywhere.
Escape Goat
Member
Russia has never lied to us before. I believe them.
It's also possible it's a boy who cried wolf situation where they actually did get him this time, but lied too much beforehand to be credible. I mean, it's not impossible for this to be true.
There are none, because Russia never claimed to have killed him. The official statement says that they've killed high-ranking people and that they've received information that al-Baghdadi was there as well and that they're currently verifying that information.
That's what the Defense Ministry actually said. They don't claim anything else.
acheron_xl
Member
Thoughts and prayers for Dana Rohrabacher.
Escape Goat
Member
Not all leaders are created equal. Bin laden was charasmatic, from a respectable background and tons of connections and respected by his most devout followers. His #2 came in and was far less effective, but still dangerous.
Yeah that's what I was thinking. I have no idea how important the leader is to ISIL. Hopefully very important and now very dead.
Jack The Nipper
Banned
This is how they combat trump news?
T
Transhuman
Unconfirmed Member
I wonder if all those journalists critical of Putin they killed were ISIS leaders too
BrassDragon
Member
Russian MOD talks generally about the decapitation strike. The source mentioning al-Baghdadi seems to be Syrian state television, which definitely proved unreliable in the past. Bad call by AP if they combined these two snippets without confirmation.
My read is that the air strike did hurt IS-leadership significantly but no one knows which commanders were actually on site when the ordnance came down.
My read is that the air strike did hurt IS-leadership significantly but no one knows which commanders were actually on site when the ordnance came down.
Yeah, what AP is saying is simply made up.
BrassDragon
Member
We know he already made arrangement to defer his military command to successors but this guy's main strengths are political acumen and a personality that inspires loyalty (which often gives him early warning of maneuvers in Iraq, old associates continue to feed him intelligence.) There are some deep political/religious/tribal divisions within ISIS as they battle on two fronts, so any successor is going to have some pretty big boots to fill as he tries to keep their shit together.
There's a definite advantage for anti-ISIS forces to take him out of play. Even if they absorb the shock of his absence completely, it'll slow down their decision making process and reaction speed at a crucial moment in the campaign.
GeordieMark
Member
Pics or it didn't happen
Dynamite Shikoku
Congratulations, you really deserve it!
believing russia is like believing that kid at school whose uncle works at nintendo
Golden_Pigeon
Banned
There is hundreds of thousands of seyyed (people claiming to be descendant of the Prophet) just look at the iranian political and religious leadership. I don't think that it will change anything, at the contrary, having a "martyred" Caliph could give a boost to the moral of the ISIS troops.
That is what both Fallen, Hive and Oryx also thougt.
Obviously I'm not very knowledgeable on Islamic eschatology, but what if numbers 2, 3, and 4 on the chain of command are not seyyed? (Or would they not become 2 3 4 in the first place if they weren't). Will they go to number 5? Do they postpone the returning of the Mahdi for a bit until they find a new Caliph? And what about the return of the Caliph did not lead to the return of the Mahdi? Can a not seyyed take over without them being a bit like the Umayyad. I feel like it would all be a bit more involved and delicate than saying Allahuackbar meet number two he's now number one.
Any Questions
Member
Good.
Mr.Shrugglesã
Banned
Is trump licking the chode yet?
CarlisleDavid1979
Member
Took a break from bombing hospitals then
Golden_Pigeon
Banned
They don't need the Caliph to be seyyed. Of course, it have some weight but not as much as you might think. I think the first eschatological euphory about ISIS is long gone since their territory is getting eaten by the iraqi forces. Just think about them loosing a place like Dabiq (very important in their eschatology). Let's just remember that they were planning on marching on Rome (lol).
So i think it will become more like Al-Qaida. I don't even know if they will maintain this caliphate BS, because if they don't control any significant territory, it don't even mean anything. The Caliph is supposed to rule and the represent the whole muslim world.
About the succession, it won't be a problem. I mean, they didn't have any kind of issue with breaking with AQ overnight and declaring them apostates.
RPGCrazied
Member
Trying so hard to get those sanctions removed. Get a US President of their choosing, nope, make false claims about doing stuff to ISIS, nope. We even have a new bill that Trump can't lift the sanctions.
What's next Putin?
What's next Putin?
Reckheim
Member
Not everything in the world is a conspiracy.
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