The U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State said it could not confirm the Russian report that Baghdadi may have been killed. The United States was informed in advance about the place and time of the strike, the Russian military said. Islamic State fighters are close to defeat in the twin capitals of the group's territory, Mosul in Iraq and Raqqa in Syria. Rami Abdulrahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, cast doubt on the report Baghdadi may have been killed. He said that according to his information, Baghdadi was located in another part of Syria at the end of May.

Source: The Star June 16, 2017 07:24 UTC