‘Monitoring group says ISIS members confirm leader’s death’

‘Caliph’ Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

We have another report that the caliph/leader of the so-called Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is dead:

Monitoring group says ISIS members confirm leader’s death

July 11, 2017

LONDON — A London-based monitoring group with a solid history of accurately reporting incidents from inside war-torn Syria said Tuesday that it had been able to confirm the death of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Russia said in June that there was a “high degree of probability” al-Baghdadi had been killed in a Russian airstrike at the end of May. Moscow first made the claim on June 16, saying it had evidence he was among a group of ISIS leaders targeted at a meeting just outside the terror group’s de facto capital in Raqqa, Syria.

U.S. and Iraqi officials cast doubt on the claim then …

The director of the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) told CBS News that a “1st tier and two 2nd tier ISIS commanders from Deir Ezzor” had confirmed al-Baghdadi’s death.

SOHR director Ramy Abdel Rahman told CBS News by phone that the sources “could not say when Baghdadi died, or whether he succumbed to injuries he sustained in an attack.”

ISIS has now lost the largest population center it controlled in Iraq, the city of Mosul, and is surrounded by U.S.-allied and Syrian forces in Raqqa. The size of the group’s self-declared “Islamic caliphate” has shrunk around 60 percent over the last several years.

If confirmed, al-Baghdadi’s death would be a huge symbolic blow to the Sunni Muslim extremist group, which many experts expect to convert in the coming months into a more traditional insurgency — still hell-bent on carrying out deadly attacks as and where it can, but without holding significant territory in either Iraq or Syria.

Baghdadi hasn’t been heard from since late 2016. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/abu-bakr-al-baghdadi-islamic-state-of-iraq-levant-isis-leader-dead-sohr-says/

July 11, 2017

ISTANBUL — A group that monitors the war in Syria said Tuesday it has “confirmed information” about the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State, citing information received from the militants in eastern Syria.

Baghdadi’s death has been rumored numerous times in the past, and it was not immediately possible to independently verify the claim. There also were no immediate announcements from the Islamic State’s news channels.

The U.S. Central Command said in a statement, “We cannot confirm this report, but hope it is true.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/death-of-islamic-state-leader-confirmed-by-militant-fighters-says-syrian-monitoring-group/2017/07/11/c2a059e0-6636-11e7-94ab-5b1f0ff459df_story.html?utm_term=.c902c14a39eb

11 July 2017

ISIS has finally admitted its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead, according to reports in Iraq.

The terror group is said to have confirmed that the 45-year-old was killed in an air strike in the Iraqi province of Nineveh.

Reports claim ISIS fanatics are scrambling to find a successor to the terror chief, who announced the formation of the group’s so-called caliphate in Mosul in 2014.

A ban on jihadis talking about the leader’s death has now been lifted, according to a source who spoke to Iraqi media.

If confirmed, his death would mark another devastating blow to the jihadist group after its loss of Mosul, which Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said Monday had been retaken from ISIS after a gruelling months-long campaign. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4685292/ISIS-admits-leader-Abu-Bakr-al-Baghdadi-dead.html#ixzz4mX9zDS1T

Presuming Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is actually dead, that is consistent with my longstanding belief that this Islamic State leader would not succeed to become the leader of the biblically prophesied King of the South.

On June 30, 2014, I questioned whether or not he would survive (see ISIL declares itself ‘Islamic State’ and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as caliph). Later, in 2014 and 2015, I made the following posts:

The Islamic State … I do not believe its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi will become the biblical King of the South. (Thiel B. Islamic State kills 500 Yazidis who would not convert; 20,000 hidden escape; USA drops more bombs. COGwriter.com, August 10, 2014)

Despite his image of itself, {it} remains my opinion that the leader of the so-called Islamic State, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, will not become the King of the South of Bible prophecy. (Thiel B. Islamic State believes it will beat the ‘Roman’ armies in Syria. COGwriter.com, March 30, 2015)

Here is something I posted at this news page on February 23, 2017:

Will the ‘Islamic State’ under its ‘Caliph’ Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi survive?

No.

I have written that since the Islamic State made major ‘progress’ years ago. (Thiel B. Islamic State facing military and financial losses: Will it survive?. COGwriter.com, February 23, 2017)

While the final King of the South will be brutal and Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was/has been a brutal, I did not believe that he could be the one to fulfill certain biblical prophecies (e.g. Daniel 11:27; Ezekiel 30:4-5). News events seem to be confirming my published views that he could not be the prophesied King of the South.

Here is some earlier background information about him:

Ibrahim Awwad Ibrahim Ali al-Badri al-Samarrai (Arabic: ابراهيم عواد ابراهيم علي البدري السامرائي‎), most commonly known as Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (أبو بكر البغدادي), and also as Dr. Ibrahim, Abu Dua (أبو دعاء), and Caliph Ibrahim, is the leader and so-called caliph (head of state) of the Islamic State controlled by the militant Islamist group, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), alternatively translated as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

The formation of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant was announced on 8 April 2013 in a statement by al-Baghdadi. It is the successor to the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) militant group (aka Al-Qaeda in Iraq or AQI), which was the Iraqi division of the international Islamist militant organization al-Qaeda…

On 29 June 2014, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant was renamed the Islamic State and al-Baghdadi was named its Caliph,using his actual name, Ibrahim…

Al-Baghdadi is believed to have been born in Samarra, Iraq, in 1971. Reports suggest that he was a imam at around the time of the US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq.

He holds a PhD in Islamic studies from a university in Baghdad…

In 2014, it was reported that Al-Baghdadi was in US custody in 2005, and was held at Camp Bucca, a US-controlled detention facility in Iraq, until he was transferred to Iraqi control in 2009 and released later that year under an agreement signed by President George W. Bush the previous year. (Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Wikipedia, viewed 06/30/14)

So, US President George Bush released Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. But I should add that policies from the Obama Administration helped fuel the rise of his Islamic State.

As far as the Islamic State itself goes, it will be defeated. It has been attacked by Iraq, Syria, USA, France, Jordan, Egypt, and others. It is losing territory and essentially lost one of its major strongholds in the last few days (see Islamic State defeated in Mosul? What’s ahead?).

Despite its coming defeat, the time will come when a number of states in the Middle East and North Africa will form a coalition (Daniel 11:40-43), likely with Western encouragement, partially to deal with Islamic terrorists.

Even if Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is not dead yet, let me add that there is no way I believe that he will lead the coalition that the Bible refers to as led by the King of the South (Daniel 11:40-43). But his goal of a confederation of predominantly Islamic nations will come to pass (cf. Ezekiel 30:2-8; see also The Prophesied ‘Islamic’ Confederation).

Several items of possibly related interest may include:

The Arab and Islamic World In the Bible, History, and Prophecy The Bible discusses the origins of the Arab world and discusses the Middle East in prophecy. What is ahead for the Middle East and those who follow Islam? What about the Imam Mahdi? What lies ahead for Turkey, Iran, and the other non-Arabic Muslims? An item of possibly related interest in the Spanish language would be: Líderes iraníes condenan la hipocresía de Occidente y declaran que ahora es tiempo para prepararse para el Armagedón, la guerra, y el Imán Mahdi.
Is the Future King of the South Rising Up? Some no longer believe there needs to be a future King of the South. Might Egypt, Islam, Iran, Arabs, or Ethiopia be involved? Might this King be called the Mahdi or Caliph? What does the Bible say? A YouTube video of related interest may be: The Future King of the South is Rising.
The Prophesied ‘Islamic’ Confederation Where is an Islamic caliphate prophesied? Will one happen? Should you be concerned about it? A related video is Will an Arabic Calphiphate Destroy the West?
Iraq, the King of the South, Armageddon, and Prophecy What will happen to Iraq? Is it the prophesied Mystery Babylon? What is Armageddon and how does that have to do with Iraq? Here is a related video Iraq, Armageddon, & Prophecy.
How Will Middle East Peace be Brought About? Can humans bring peace to the Middle East? Here is a link to a related video: Middle East Peace? When?
The ‘Peace Deal’ of Daniel 9:27 This prophecy could give up to 3 1/2 years advance notice of the coming Great Tribulation. Will most ignore or misunderstand its fulfillment? Here is a link to a related sermon video Daniel 9:27 and the Start of the Great Tribulation.
Anglo – America in Prophecy & the Lost Tribes of Israel Are the Americans, Canadians, English, Scottish, Welsh, Australians, Anglo-Saxon (non-Dutch) Southern Africans, and New Zealanders descendants of Joseph? Where are the lost ten-tribes of Israel? Who are the lost tribes of Israel? What will happen to Jerusalem and the Jews in Israel? Will God punish the U.S.A., Canada, United Kingdom, and other Anglo-Saxon nations? Why might God allow them to be punished first? Here is a link to the Spanish version of this article: Anglo-América & las Tribus Perdidas de Israel. Information is also in the YouTube sermons titled Where are the Ten Lost Tribes? Why does it matter? and British are the Covenant People. A short YouTube of prophetic interest may be Barack Obama and the State of the Apocalypse.
When Will the Great Tribulation Begin? 2017, 2018, or 2019? Can the Great Tribulation begin today? What happens before the Great Tribulation in the “beginning of sorrows”? What happens in the Great Tribulation and the Day of the Lord? Is this the time of the Gentiles? When is the earliest that the Great Tribulation can begin? What is the Day of the Lord? Who are the 144,000? Here is a version of the article in the Spanish language: ¿Puede comenzar la Gran Tribulación en 2016 o 2017? ¿Es el Tiempo de los Gentiles? You can also see the English language sermon videos: The Great Tribulation from the Mount of Olives and Can the Great Tribulation begin before 2020? A shorter video is: Will the Great Tribulation Start in 2017?