US intelligence agencies have assessed with a high degree of confidence that the world's most wanted man was near Raqqa, Syria, when the missile struck, the officials said late Sunday. Their assessment is based on reports from IS detainees and refugees in northern Syria that emerged months after the airstrike. Baghdadi's injuries were not considered life-threatening but they did mean he could not continue to command the daily operations of the group, said the officials. However, it remains unclear whether Baghdadi was hit in a targeted attack or if he was part of "collateral damage". Baghdadi has made only one public appearance in July 2014 at the al-Nuri Mosque in Mosul, which was retaken by Iraqi security forces in June 2017.

Source: bd News24 February 12, 2018 10:30 UTC