Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Profile: Who is ISIS Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi? {Infographic}


Sun 27 Oct 2019 | 11:11 AM
Nawal Sayed

Following multiple reports about death of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, his profile should be known to everyone. U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to make statements at 9am Washington time. 

SEE sums up Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's profile as follows:

  • His full name is Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim Ali al-Badri al-Samarra
  • He was born in Samarra, north of Iraqi capital Baghdad, in 1971.
  • He was reportedly a cleric in a mosque when the city was invaded by US-led forces in 2003.
  • Reports claim that he was radicalized and was brainwashed in Camp Bucca, a US prison in southern Iraq.
  • He was former leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq which eventually transformed into ISIS in 2010.
  • Al-Baghdadi’s first public appearance on video was in 2014 when he delivered a sermon in Mosul, Iraq.
  • The so-called “caliphate” had been declared by the sinister terror chief and his followers earlier that year.
  • Since the terror boss' disappearance, ISIS have suffered heavy defeats in Iraq, Syria and Libya - including losing control of Mosul in July, 2017.
  • There have also been numerous unsubstantiated reports of the death cult leader's demise over the years.
  • In November reports emerged out of Iraq that Baghdadi had fled the country in a yellow taxi while at the same time ordering remaining militants to fight to the death.
  • On 29 April 2019, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was shown in an 18-minute long video. It was his first public appearance for almost five years. 
  • In the video, Baghdadi is shown with an assault rifle mentioning recent events such as the loss of the last ISIS territory in Baghuz Fawqani, the Sri Lanka Easter bombings and the overthrow of Sudanese and Algerian presidents Omar al-Bashir and Abdelaziz Bouteflika, suggesting that the video was filmed around a week before being released.
  • On 16 September 2019 al-Baghdadi released an audio message calling for his followers to free detained ISIS members and their families held in camps in Iraq and Syria, such as Shamima Begum. It was recorded and distributed by Al Furqan Establishment for Media Production.
  • In August 2019, Baghdadi nominated Iraqi Abdullah Qardash as the successor of ISIS.