US President Donald Trump on Sunday announced that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi died during an overnight raid led by US military forces in Syria, a major victory as he fights a Democratic-led impeachment inquiry. Under Iraqi-born Baghdadi’s rule, Islamic State - which at one point controlled swathes of Syria and Iraq - is responsible for gruesome attacks against religious minorities and attacks on five continents in the name of a form of ultra-fanatical Islam.
The death of Baghdadi was an important win for Trump weeks after his sudden decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria sparked a wave of harsh criticism, including from fellow Republicans, that the move would lead to a resurgence of Islamic State.
