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BREAKING—- KUWAITI ANNAHAR NEWS: ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi IS DEAD! — KILLED IN US RAID


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2 hours ago, Karsten said:

Not sure why the garbage posted after the Link above...Sorry of the wasted space. Maybe a mod can delete the lower stuff.

 

Here pelosi is already demanding to be Briefed

 

Nancy Pelosi demands briefing on U.S. military's al-Baghdadi raid.

I love it, maybe Nancy now knows exactly where she stands now in the importance of the government.
Trump I’m sure didn’t want to take her away from all her impeachment duties to worry about silly things like our national security. 

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This want be good at all....Trump is gonna catch at sorts of hell for killing 2 of obama's key players in just a couple days....

 

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A Very Bad Weekend For The Islamic State. Now Their #2 Leader Has Been Killed In A Sunday Missile Strike, Less Than 24 Hours After Baghdadi's Death

Newsweek: Abu al-Hassan al-Muhajir, the number two leader of the Islamic State and the group's spokesman, has been killed in the village of Ayn al-Bayda, in Aleppo province, Syria, and close to the border with Turkey.
He was targeted early Sunday night by a CIA controlled Hellfire missile.
Muhajir was traveling in a Hyundai vehicle that was following a fuel tanker when the missile struck.
At least five people were killed. His death comes just one day after the successful Joint Special Operations Command raid that killed ISIS leader Abu al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed caliph and one of the world's most wanted men.
Syrian Democratic Forces commander Mazloum Abdi Kobane was the first to announce the news and the group provided targeting information to the U.S.
The SDF commander said “We believe Al-Muhajir was in the village to facilitate Baghdadi’s entry to the Euphrates Shield area". He also said ”there was direct coordination between SDF intelligence and the U.S. military."
Muhajir was named ISIS spokesperson in 2016 after his predecessor, Abu Mohammad al-Adnani, was killed in a U.S. airstrike, also in Aleppo.
Unlike Baghdadi and Adnani, who were known to be Iraqi and Syrian nationals, respectively, and were openly active in Al-Qaeda in Iraq, Muhajir's identity was publicly unknown, though his nickname⁠—meaning "emigrant"⁠—suggested he may be a foreigner.
The SDF's Kobane referred to the raid that ended in the death of Baghdadi as a "Successful and historic operation due to joint intelligence work with the United States."
President Trump also expressed gratitude Syrian Kurds, noting they provided "useful" information, while Iraq also played a major role in intelligence-gathering in the leadup to the operation.
 
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
 
Karsten
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

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Or her obvious constant plastic surgery.  😖

4 hours ago, DoD said:

I love it, maybe Nancy now knows exactly where she stands now in the importance of the government.
Trump I’m sure didn’t want to take her away from all her impeachment duties to worry about silly things like our national security. 

 

:twothumbs: DoD  

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Abu Hassan al-Muhajir: ISIS spokesman "killed hours after Baghdadi was killed"

  • 18 minutes ago

The spot where Hassan al-Muhajir's father was killed in SyriaImageCOPYRIGHT GETTY IMAGES

Image caption Thespot where Hassan al-Muhajir's father was killed in Syria

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A spokesman for the Islamic State group was killed just hours after a special US operation targeting the group's leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

In a separate operation, an SDF official said US forces targeted the group's spokesman, Abu Hassan al-Muhajir, who is believed to have been a candidate to succeed Baghdadi at the head of the group.

The migrant is believed to have been killed in the village of Ain al-Baida, near the city of Jarablus, which borders Turkey.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the killing of the migrant, explaining that "among the five leaders of the Islamic State killed in the US operation, which was supported by the Syrian Democratic Forces."

Baghdadi's death is a serious blow to the once-ruthless Islamic State, and an alternative leader has yet to be known. But the group has repeatedly demonstrated that it is still capable of launching sporadic attacks in and outside Syria, without public command, despite its defeat in the areas it controlled.

Baghdadi was first wanted by the United States. Washington offered a $ 25 million prize for information that would help capture or kill him.

Trump said many members of the organization were killed in the process of eliminating Baghdadi, and that he blew himself up killing three of his children.

He added that US forces suffered no casualties and thanked Russia, Turkey, Syria and Iraq for assistance.

Turkey has said it is proud to help retaliate against a famous terrorist, but Russia has been hesitant.

This operation comes after the withdrawal of US troops from northeastern Syria, which opened the way for a Turkish military campaign against Kurdish militants deployed along the border.

SyriaImageCOPYRIGHT EPA

Image caption Theruins left by the US military operation to eliminate Baghdadi in Syria

Ankara seeks to establish a "safe area" in the border area inside Syrian territory, after the expulsion of Kurdish militants, and the settlement of part of the Syrian refugees there.

Trump has come under fire for suddenly pulling his troops out of Syria. Western countries considered the US withdrawal as an abandonment of the Americans to the Kurdish fighters, who helped in their war against the Islamic State.

Critics of Trump also expressed fears that the withdrawal of US troops would give a new breath to the Islamic State in Syria and enable it to reshape itself.

But Turkey has asserted its right to pursue Kurdish militants from the border region because it considers them "terrorists" that threaten its national security and says they are linked to the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has been leading a rebellion in Ankara for decades and has been labeled a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union.

Despite the criticism, Trump stuck to the decision to withdraw his troops from Syria. The success of the process of eliminating al-Baghdadi will dispel some of the fears of the return of the Islamic State, and strengthen the position of the US president in front of the challenges faced internally, especially the efforts of the Democrats to isolate him.

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28-10-2019 02:16 PM
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Baghdad / News

 Hizbullah al-Hashemi, an expert in armed groups, revealed on Monday details of the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and the role of the National Intelligence Service in the liquidation of al-Baghdadi.

 Hashemi said in a post on the "Facebook", "Iraqi intelligence arrested Adil al-Baghdadi, a terrorist (Muhammad Ali Sajid al-Zobaie), who confessed to the Iraqi intelligence about the area where al-Baghdadi may be, and from there was pursued al-Baghdadi near the mountain Druze in Barisha village of Idlib.

"Mohammed Ali Sajid al-Zobaie led them at the beginning of the confession to a desert tunnel near the city of Qaim, west of Anbar, where they discovered two caches filled with personal items, which included a light weapon, medical bags, religious books and a small handbag containing maps and handwritten sites. Inside the bunker. "

 He added that "the prosecution room Baghdadi succeeded in the Iraqi intelligence operations to penetrate the smuggling network and follow the transition of Baghdadi to Adab at the end of August or the beginning of September 2019."

He pointed out that "through the penetration of the smuggling network to transfer the families of the leaders of ISIS out of Syria to Turkey, has been identified the region and the village where Baghdadi is believed to have arrived, and then given the task to the US side to follow up and carry out the mission."

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Nechirvan Barzani: the elimination of Baghdadi is an important and big step in the war against terrorism

 

nechirvan_barzani_1.jpg

 

 2019/10/27 14:47:26

 

President of the Kurdistan Region Nechirvan Barzani counted on Sunday, the killing of the leader of the "Islamic State" terrorist Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a great victory in the war against terrorism, but he does not mean the end of the war against terrorism, stressing the continued cooperation and coordination between the international community to combat terrorism And the ideology of ISIS.
In a letter to Barzani, received to Twilight News, the Kurdistan Region as part of an important and head of the international coalition against "IS", the elimination of Baghdadi is a big step in the war on terrorism and appreciates the efforts of America and all those who participated in the success of this process in any way.
He added that Baghdadi's death came after the destruction of what was called the caliphate of "IS" is an important step, but it does not in any way mean the end of the war against terrorism and the thought and ideology of "IS".
He pointed out that the dangers of the strength of terrorist movements are still great, as ISIS and similar groups are still moving in the region and posing a threat to the security of the whole world. Coexistence and acceptance of some of others and tolerance and the elimination of the land that produces terrorism and people like Baghdadi.
Barzani said that the Kurdistan region, which presented the most serious victims to eliminate terrorism in the Kurdistan region and Iraq, where the Yezidis, Christians, Muslims and all religious and national components of the crimes of "ISIS" will continue to cooperate with the international community in all forms in the fight against terrorism and face ideology and thought In order to prevent the return and strengthening of "IS" and terrorism in the region and to maintain security and freedom in the world.

https://www.shafaaq.com/ar/كوردســتانيات/نيجيرفان-بارزاني-القضاء-على-البغدادي-خطوة-مهمة-وكبيرة-في-الحرب-ضد-الارهاب/

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Turkish minister: America can not address the murderer of al-Baghdadi's partner in terrorism

Political | 03:29 - 28/10/2019

 
image
 
 

 

 BAGHDAD balances News
said Turkish Interior Minister Suleiman Soilo, said that the commander of the organization of the Kurdish YPG Farhat , Abdul Shahin, nicknamed " the oppressed Kobani," no different from the leader of the Daash slain, the terrorist Abu Bakr al - Baghdadi in something.
In a speech at the opening ceremony of a training course for police station supervisors in Ankara, Souilo criticized Washington and the European Union's stances towards the PKK / YPG organization, which Turkey considers a terrorist.
Sahin Kobani described him as a “killer man” and that a state of law, referring to the United States, could not address such a person. “
He stressed that Ankara will not leave the fate of the country and the region” in the hands of a handful of wealthy people in the West. .
Turkey has criticized the US administration, after Trump made phone calls on the recent agreement between Washington and Ankara, on areas of northeastern Syria.
Turkish authorities regard Mazloum Kobani as a terrorist, in connection with the country's outlawed YPG, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is demanding his US counterpart extradite Kobani to Ankara, under a red notice from the European Interpol police.

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Everything We Know And Don't Know About The Raid That Killed ISIS Leader Al Baghdadi(Updated)

We know a surprisingly large amount about the deep raid into Syria to take out the depraved terrorist kingpin, but many questions still remain.

 
President Trump in the Situation Room during the raid that killed ISIS Founder al-Baghdadi, with insets of al-Baghdadi and an MH-47 helicopter.
WHITE HOUSE/DOD/AL-FURQAN MEDIA
 

On the evening of Oct. 26, 2019, in Syria's war-torn Idlib Province, a U.S. special operations raid killed one of history's most despicable human beings, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. This man was the mastermind of the ISIS caliphate and presided over some of the most depraved acts against humanity seen in generations. His departure from existence is incredible news for the world. That being said, here's what we know about the historic and high-risk operation.

 
 

President Trump, who first tweeted that "something very big has just happened" at 9:23 PM local time in Washington D.C. on Saturday evening, talked for nearly an hour and a half about the raid on the morning of Oct. 27. Here are all the main points garnered from his remarkably extensive comments and keep in mind that some of this information is likely to change:

 
  • Raid occurred under the cover of darkness in Idlib Province in northwestern Syria.
  • The target was a fortified compound that sat above a number of tunnels, all but one of which were thought to be deadends.
  • Al-Baghdadi died after running into a dead-end tunnel with three children. He detonated a suicide vest, killing himself and the three children and collapsing the tunnel.
  • Debris was removed and an on-site technician executed a DNA test that came up positive. What was left of him also matched his description. Cadavers are being brought back to the United States for further analysis.
  • Trump said al-Baghdadi was crying and screaming before death and that he died "like a dog" and "a coward."
  • The team spent roughly two hours in the compound and retrieved large amounts of intelligence for analysis and exploitation. 
  • No American service members were killed in the operation.
  • Special operators were met with a ground fire when they arrived. The targets were neutralized from the helicopters. 
  • A hole was blown in the side of the compound to access its interior instead of going through a door as it was thought they would be boobytrapped.
  • One combat K9 was injured after chasing al-Baghdadi into the tunnel, but did not die. 
  • A large number of ISIS fighters died with a smaller group captured. They are now in an undisclosed prison.
  • 11 children were rescued safely during the raid and were turned over to an undisclosed local party.
  • Two women who were wearing suicide vests were also killed, but they did not detonate their vests.
  • An explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) robot was on-site to move down the tunnel if needed, but the raid moved too fast for it to be used.
  • Trump watched the raid in real-time from the Situation Room along with Vice President Pence, Defense Secretary Esper, the Joint Chiefs Of Staff including Chairman U.S. Army General Mike Milley, and National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien. The room also held other intelligence and military officials and advisors.
  • Trump noted the technology behind his ability to watch the raid directly was very impressive and it was "as though you were watching a movie."
  • Only American forces were directly involved in the operation.
  • Eight special operations helicopters were used in the operation, which flew through Syrian, Russian, and Turkish defended airspace during the mission.
  • Flight time was 1 hour and 10 minutes in and was considered among the most dangerous parts of the operation. 
  • The helicopters took an identical route in and out. 
  • Russia received advanced notice of a U.S. mission in order to deconflict airspace, but they were not told about the target of the operation.
  • Trump thanked Iraq, as well, for their cooperation, although exactly what it entailed is unclear.
  • The helicopters flew at very low level and at very high speed during their ingress and egress to the targe area and took small arms fire along the way. It is thought that these were locals just taking potshots at the helicopters.
  • The operation was supported by substantial airpower operating at very high-altitudes according to Trump. He also stated that many ships and planes were involved. 
  • The Kurds supplied useful intelligence leading up to the raid.
  • Trump said the helicopters landed at "a friendly port in a friendly country."
  • Trump said that he entered the Situation Room at around 5:00 PM and that the helicopters launched shortly after that. He sent his tweet after they landed safely at 9:23 PM.
  • Intel about al-Baghdadi's whereabouts started the chain of events that led to the operation a month ago.
  • He was under surveillance for weeks.
  • Two or three times similar operations were canceled within that one-month timeframe. 
  • Al-Baghdadi constantly changed his plans on the fly and never used cell phones, etc., complicating targeting.
  • Further confirmation of his presence at the compound occurred and the mission was set to be executed for three days before it began on Saturday evening.
  • Trump stated that al-Baghdadi was in Idlib to rebuild ISIS and that he had large amounts of cash on hand to do so.
 
 
 

Beyond Trump's own comments, there have been multiple stories citing anonymous U.S. government sources, as well as those from other countries in the region, that have offered additional, albeit unconfirmed details about the operation. The exact composition of the raiding force, as well as where it started from initially and where it ended, remains unclear, along with a number of other key questions. It has been widely reported that the compound itself was near the town of Barisha, which sits close to the Turkish border.

 
 

Footage from the morning after matches https://t.co/7n2LNJdMFg pic.twitter.com/3Td9vWkxLO

— Ryan O'Farrell (@ryanmofarrell) October 27, 2019

A major U.S. intelligence collection effort, with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) at its head, was chiefly responsible for determining Baghdadi's whereabouts and more immediate actionable information that led to the raid, according to Foreign Policy. For years, the U.S. Intelligence Community and the U.S. military have had standing forces dedicated to hunting down senior ISIS figures and its not the first time there have been major raids in Syria. For instance, in 2015, then-Secretary of Defense Ash Carter had revealed the existence of the JSOC-led "Expeditionary Targeting Force," or ETF. This unit was likely involved in a mission that killed ISIS' number two at the time, Rahman Mustafa Qaduli, in Syria the following year. Another operation in 2017, which led to the death of Abdurakhmon Uzbeki,  a "close associate" of Baghdadi according to the Pentagon, bore all the hallmarks of this task force, as well. 

It is possible that the raid on Baghdadi's compound might be at least partially related to a previously reported operation aimed at tracking the movement of ISIS members throughout the region, as well as elsewhere around the world, known as Operation Gallant Phoenix. , as well. An interagency task force including the CIA, the National Security Agency, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and U.S. military's secretive Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) were reportedly in charge of this effort, which focused heavily on intelligence fusion, from a main base of operations in Jordan. During the approximately two hours they were on the ground at the site during the Baghdadi raid, special operators reportedly recovered additional information that could be useful in locating and killing or capturing other major ISIS figures.

In addition, Iraqi and Turkish officials have said that their governments were both involved to some degree in the lead up to the operation. Sources in Iraq told Reuters that some of the information that led to the raid came from the arrest of two individuals from Baghdadi's "inner circle" and documents recovered during that operation. 

 

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's intelligence service provided the U.S.-led coalition with the exact coordinates of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's location, paving the way for the raid that reportedly killed him, an Iraqi intelligence official told Reuters on Sunday.

— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) October 27, 2019

Turkish officials also told Reuters that they been aware of the operation ahead of time and coordinated with "relevant parties" on the ground to assist with the mission. Turkey has a significant influence in Idlib via a number of rebel groups opposed to the Syrian regime and Ankara has been instrumental in ensuring that Assad has been unable to retake the entire province. Those same Turkish officials added that Baghdadi had only arrived at the compound some 48 hours before the raid. An unnamed U.S. official disputed claims of cooperation with Turkey during the operation when speaking to Fox News.

 

Americans called Russians on “de-confliction” line to warn of pending U.S. military assault on Baghdadi compound in NW Syria. No de-confliction with Turkey who “did not help in any way,” U.S. defense official says

— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) October 27, 2019

The U.S.-supported, predominantly Kurdish-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said that they also provided important intelligence related to Baghdadi ahead of the operation. A spokesman for the Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG, which has provided the bulk of the manpower for the SDF, said in March that the group believed that the ISIS leader had made his way into Idlib. 

 

For five months there has been joint intel cooperation on the ground and accurate monitoring, until we achieved a joint operation to kill Abu Bakir al-Bagdadi.

Thanks to everybody who participate in this great mission.@realDonaldTrump#SDF#USArmy #Rojava #Baghdadi

— Mazloum Abdî مظلوم عبدي (@MazloumAbdi) October 27, 2019

Should be noted that YPG spokesperson @NuriMahmud1 already told @K24English in March 2019 that the SDF information that Baghdadi escaped (Deir ezZor) to Idlib. This also confirms the important role SDF played in locating Baghdadi https://t.co/CdmV9s5MMq pic.twitter.com/rKMO2nHYid

— Wladimir (@vvanwilgenburg) October 27, 2019

In July 2019, a United Nations report had also said that there was evidence that ISIS fighters, including senior leaders, had fled into the relative safety of the province. This was despite the presence of a litany of groups violently opposed to the terrorist organization residing in Idlib, including Turkish-backed rebels and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), the latter of which includes a significant number of former Al Qaeda-aligned fighters.

 

Reports #ISIS leader Abu Bakr al #Baghdadi may have been killed in #Idlib #Syria shouldn't come as a complete surprise-at least the location

In July, a @UN report warned senior ISIS leaders "are among those who have made their way to the #Idlib area..."https://t.co/4ixEKW0xT2 pic.twitter.com/xEFrnTjy8h

— Jeff Seldin (@jseldin) October 27, 2019

Some executions of ISIS cell members in Idlib by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, January and February 2019 https://t.co/dVlqa6Ysoa pic.twitter.com/vdQndLEsCr

— Elizabeth Tsurkov (@Elizrael) October 27, 2019

It's not clear how the Turkish intervention into Northern Syria targeting the SDF, which Ankara sees as a terrorist group, may or may not have impacted the raid on Baghdadi. Later on Oct. 27, after Trump's formal announcement about Baghdadi, the U.S.-backed group did announce that it had targeted Abu al-Hassan al-Muhajir, ISIS' top spokesperson and Baghdadi's right-hand man, in an associated raid in the village fo Ain al-Baydah, near the city of Jarabulus. This is unconfirmed and would be very curious given that this is an area ostensibly under Turkish control and very close to the Turkish border, where the SDF had previously agreed to withdraw from as part of a deal between the United States and Turkey.

 

Trump said the Baghdadi operation began "two weeks ago."

On Oct. 13, Defense Secretary Mark Esper announced that U.S. troops were pulling out of northern Syria

— Dave Brown (@dave_brown24) October 27, 2019

Breaking: SDF commander Mazloum Abdi says Abu al-Hassan al-Muhajir, Baghdadi’s right-hand man and an ISIS spokesman, was targeted in the village of Ain al-Baydah, near Jarablus, in direct coordination between the SDF intelligence and the US military. https://t.co/vAVwq3Farq

— Lara Seligman (@laraseligman) October 27, 2019

MORE from #SDF’s @mustefabali on #ISIS spokesman Abu Hassan al Muhajir - says he was moving around in a empty oil tankerhttps://t.co/LdezDc0BwJ

— Jeff Seldin (@jseldin) October 27, 2019

That Trump specifically thanked Russia and Syria might also indicate that there was some level of greater cooperation with either of those countries on this operation, but this seems very unlikely. Assad and his Russian and Iranian allies have not historically prioritized fighting ISIS. A recent investigation from The New York Times has only underscored how the Syrian regime, with help from Russia, focused the majority of their energy on eliminating rebel groups that threatened the Assad regime by any means necessary and has been actively targeting civilians, including through bombing hospitals, in the furtherance of those goals. 

For its part, the Russian Ministry of Defense has publicly denied any involvement in the operation against Baghdadi and has also called the U.S. government's announcement into question. In February 2019, the head of Russia's Main Directorate military intelligence agency, better known by the Russian acronym GRU, had insisted that the ISIS leader was not in Idlib. The Russians had also claimed to have killed him multiple times in recent years.

 

Russia defense ministry spokesman says "no credible information about US servicemen carrying out an operation to once again 'destroy' the IS ex-leader Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi." Via @RIANovosty https://t.co/41bqobeYVP

— Borzou Daragahi 🖊🗒 (@borzou) October 27, 2019

It also remains unclear how and by what route U.S. special operations forces traveled to Baghdadi's compound. Reports have said that the American personnel initially departed from Erbil, the capital of Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region in the northeastern portion of that country and a major U.S. military hub, as well as Al Asad Air Base further to the southwest. 

 

more recently, some MH-47 Chinook special operations helicopters with in-flight refueling capability were deployed to Al Asad Airbase as well https://t.co/GLGRvKtfsV pic.twitter.com/T0ww7ShGGS

— Samir (@obretix) October 27, 2019

It is possible that both of these reports are accurate and that there was a need to assemble the requisite personnel from multiple locations in order to act on actionable intelligence about the ISIS leader. However, based on Trump's statements about how long it took them to fly to Baghdadi's compound, it is all but impossible that they traveled directly from Erbil or Al Asad. 

The helicopters could have flown to Barisha from an intermediate staging point, however. One very possible location would have been the Kobane Landing Zone, which is situated some 100 miles northeast of where Baghdadi's hiding out. The U.S. military has been withdrawing from this base, which the United States first occupied some time in 2015, as a result of the Turkish intervention. 

Official pictures show that U.S. personnel were still there helping with the pullout as of Oct. 23, 2019. Even if the U.S. military had otherwise vacated this base, it would have still provided a large, established airstrip that would have been ideal for establishing a Forward Arming and Refueling Point, or FARP, which U.S. special operations forces routinely use during longer-range air assaults.

 
https%3A%2F%2Fs3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com
US ARMY

US military personnel load cargo onto a US Air Force C-17 Globemaster III transport plane at the Kobane Landing Zone on Oct. 23, 2019. A US Army AH-64 Apache attack helicopter is visible in the background.

However, Trump's comments about a "port" and "ships" might suggest that the raiding force started or completed its mission somewhere else, despite his additional statement that the special operators took the same route to and from the target location. There has been speculation that they may have started and ended the operation against Baghdadi from the U.K. Royal Air Force Base at Akrotiri on the island of Cyprus. A U.S. Navy or contractor-operated ship in the Eastern Mediterranean acting as a sea base is another possibility.

 

I was thinking same. Trump let the word “port” and also 110min travel time slip

UH-60 can travel 413km in 110 mins (full speed)

370km between Akrotiri and Barisha, Idlib.

Also ties in with Turkish and Russian co-op/permissions (?) over Cyprus and nr. Latakia ¯\(°_o)/¯ pic.twitter.com/U36hXgRmpi

— Stephen Corstorphine (@S_Corsto) October 27, 2019

More detail about the exact composition of the raiding force could eventually help answer questions about the most likely ingress and egress routes. On Oct. 27, 2019, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper told ABC's Martha Raddatz that approximately a 100 U.S. special operators – reportedly primarily from the U.S. Army's Delta Force and 75th Ranger Regiment – took part in the operation and that Chinook helicopters brought them to and from the target site. The Chinooks were likely MH-47s from the Army's elite 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, though even JSOC's elite task forces have used standard Army CH-47s, among other conventional enablers, when necessary, in the past. In this case, it is probably safe to say that the 160th SOAR's highly modified MH-47s were exclusively involved considering the hostile airspace the mission took place in, its low-level night penetration demands, and the unique communications and command and control gear needed to coordinate such a complex and high-stakes operation.

Bystanders also found shell casings associated with the M230 30mm automatic cannon near Baghdadi's compound in the aftermath of the attack. Automatic cannon fire allegedly destroyed a small minibus, possibly to prevent Baghdadi and others from escaping the area. There were also reports that gunships otherwise raked the compound and nearby areas with cannon fire during the operation. This was likely in response to the reports of personnel on the ground shooting at the helicopters.

 

Fresh Footage via local activities showing the location of chase that took place after the rides, between the US Forces and Baghdadi's Cell.

لقطات حديثة تظهر موقع المطاردة التي حصلت.

PS: attention violent content.#Syria #ISIS #Daesh@Liveuamap @QalaatAlMudiq @michaeldweiss pic.twitter.com/Jr0RYTkUtk

— Mzahem Alsaloum (@Mzahem_Alsaloum) October 27, 2019

ADVISORY UNVERIFIED
Footage purportedly filmed in #Barisha#Idlib this morning claims to show aftermath of #Baghdadi raid. pic.twitter.com/5hLJwdOrOP

— Riam Dalati (@Dalatrm) October 27, 2019

#Syria #Idlib
More pics from Berisha: here you can see one of the vehicles destroyed during #US raid against #Isis leader and some of the ammo used. pic.twitter.com/GuEeU4hQOP

— MrRevinsky (@Kyruer) October 27, 2019

The 160th uses this weapon on their MH-60L/M Black Hawk special operations helicopters in the Direct Action Penetrator (DAP) configuration. Regular Army AH-64 Apache gunships, which have also been supporting special operations activities in Syria from forward locations, such as the KLZ, as seen in the picture of that base earlier in this story, also use this weapon. Both the MH-47s and the MH-60s have inflight refueling capabilities, which could have further helped extend their range during the trip to Baghdadi's compound and then to where ever they went following the mission, as well. 

 
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UNITED COMPOSITES

One of the 160th SOAR's MH-60Ms in the latest Direct Action Penetrator (DAP) configuration using Multi-Station Lightweight Armament support Structure (MLASS) stub wings. An M230 30mm cannon pod is visible on the inboard pylon on the left side of the helicopter.

The truth is, we really don't know the composition of the eight helicopter force at this time beyond the inclusion of MH-47s Chinooks. Many will wonder if some form of stealthy Black Hawk was used, similar to those used in the Bin Laden raid. It is possible that the initial raiding force used such a platform, a newer version of which has been rumored to be operating around Syria for years, but we just don't know at this time. The possibility that heavy weaponry was fired at the compound from the air during the operation would make this possibility less likely. 

Also, alerting the local players as to the operation's timing may have reduced enough risk to allow the more conventional helicopters to be used. Of course, it's not like the 160th SOAR's MH-60s and MH-47s aren't designed to operate in contested airspace as it is. 

So many other questions remain, such as what airpower was assigned to give this raiding force cover from above if it would have been needed. It is very rare that manned U.S. or coalition aircraft fly into Western Syria. For years, it has been all but off-limits airspace and standoff munitions were used to hit larger targets. American drones have and still do operate in the area, but considering how high-value this target was, placing a non-stealthy drone overhead for weeks may have been too risky. During the lead-up to Operation Neptune Spear that took down Bin Laden, stealthy RQ-170 Sentinels worked as the eyes in the sky over Bin Laden's compound, even watching him pace daily in his courtyard prior to the operation commencing.

It is very possible Sentinels were used to monitor the compound in the weeks leading up to the operation and to stream live video of the operation, as well. In fact, just like in 2011, this is likely what Trump and his advisors were watching in the Situation Room. It's also worth noting that there are also stealthy MQ-11 Avengers in the region that could be under the CIA's direction. Either asset would have been more ideal than an MQ-9 Reaper drone hanging out over the compound for days on end and during the raid. The MQ-11 could also provide close air support.

 
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TYSON V. RININGER / WWW.TVRPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

A General Atomics Avenger.

With all this in mind, another question emerges: were F-35s used for overhead support or were far more traceable assets held off at a greater distance, ready to push into the area if need be? The latter option would have required a far more elaborate package, including Wild Weasel aircraft ready to suppress or destroy any enemy air defense systems that may target the fighter aircraft above. Regardless, a huge number of aerial assets would have been involved in this operation—from airborne command and control aircraft, to tankers, to communications relay aircraft, to electronic intelligence monitoring platforms, to combat search and rescue forces. Every contingency would have been planned for and capabilities arrayed to respond as needed.

The lightning-fast disclosure of this raid is also puzzling. There was no stealth Black Hawk tail left behind to answer for as was the case in the Bin Laden operation. Considering the level of exploitable intelligence they pulled out of that compound, even a few days would have given the intel folks a leg up on targeting al-Baghdadi's accomplices and operatives – as has reportedly already happened to Abu al-Hassan al-Muhajir. 

The compound was leveled after the operation, as well, which may have drawn some local attention, but in that region, kinetic actions happen daily against all types of targets. Electronic communications between top ISIS operatives were limited if not nonexistent, news of the raid would have spread slower than otherwise and it would have probably been laced with confusion.

 

Astonishing aerial photo of the aftermath of the US raid on Baghdadi's compound in Barisha, Idlib, from @AFP pic.twitter.com/b2IAhEnFyv

— Josie Ensor (@Josiensor) October 27, 2019

Regardless, one of history's most depraved maniacs has been scraped from the earth once and for all. More details are sure to emerge about the operation in the hours and days to come. We will keep you up to date as they do.

UPDATE: 6:30pm EST—

National Security Advisor Robert O’Brien told NBC's "Meet the Press" on Oct. 27, 2019, that the official nickname for the operation was a tribute to Kayla Mueller, an American air worker that ISIS took hostage and murdered in 2015. He did not say what the nickname was, however. For comparison, the raid that led to the death of Al Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden was nicknamed Operation Neptune Spear.

UPDATE: 10/28/2019—

The New York Times and Bloomberg have both now reported that President Donald Trump's decision to effectively acquiesce to Turkey's intervention into northern Syria targeting the predominantly Kurdish SDF and a subsequent order for a near-total withdrawal of American forces from the country had threatened to upend the search for Baghdadi and plans to raid his compound in Barisha. U.S. policy has reversed to some degree with a decision that came last week that has seen American troops now reinforce a position near the city of Deir Ez Zor.

"The Syrian and Iraqi Kurds, one official said, provided more intelligence for the raid than any single country," The Times reported. The SDF continued to provide information on Baghdadi and his whereabouts even after the pullout began, which the group had publicly described as a betrayal by the United States.

There is also an unconfirmed report that Baghdadi's remains have been buried at sea, as was the case with Osama Bin Laden's body, a tactic used to prevent them, or even just a known final resting place, from becoming a shrine of sorts for future terrorists. This also brings up questions again about the involvement of ships offshore during the operation.

 

Source tells me Abu Bakr al Baghdadi remains have already been buried at sea.

— Jennifer Griffin (@JenGriffinFNC) October 28, 2019

UPDATE: 1:20 PM EST—

General Mazlum Abdi, who also goes by Mazlum Kobane, the head of the SDF, has claimed that the organization had a source who had infiltrated Baghdadi's compound, providing unprecedented information about the site and its layout ahead of the operation, as well as other vital details. That individual was reportedly on the ground during the operation. There are also reports that SDF personnel were otherwise present during the raid, but it unclear if this refers to this particular informant.

 

Gen. Mazlum Kobane tells @NBCNews that Kurdish intelligence had a deep source in Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's inner circle who provided information essential to the US raid that killed the ISIS leader. Mazlum said the informant was at Baghdadi's compound as it was assaulted.

— Richard Engel (@RichardEngel) October 28, 2019

Kurdish Gen Mazloum tells .@BenjaminHallFNC: The SDF provided the location, the details about the Baghdadi compound, the tunnels, and how many people were with him. The SDF knew this because of a source inside ISIS.
An SDF member was on the raid helping US.

— Jennifer Griffin (@JenGriffinFNC) October 28, 2019

At a press briefing on Oct. 28, 2019, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff U.S. Army General Mark Milley, standing beside Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, said that a wide variety of munitions, including AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) cruise missiles, unspecified precision-guided bombs, and AGM-114 Hellfire guided missiles, had been responsible for leveling Baghdadi's compound. 

He did not say what aircraft were involved, but this makes confirms that, as expected, some number of fixed-wing aircraft were providing top cover for the operation, in addition to the still unknown helicopter gunships. Milley said that additional information may be coming soon in subsequent briefings. The General also said that the military working dog injured in the raid was set to make a full recovery.

 

US used a variety of munitions, including JASSMs, GBUs, and Hellfires to destroy Baghdadi's compound after the raid, Milley says. "We're not releasing the name of the dog right now. The dog is still in theater." Slightly wounded, but fully recovering.

— Jack Detsch (@JackDetsch_ALM) October 28, 2019

Contact the author: Tyler@thedrive.com

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