Russian MoD doubts Trump’s announcement of killing ISIS chief al-Baghdadi, rejects claims it assisted US forces in op
RT | October 27, 2019
There’s no credible data to prove a successful American raid took place against Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, Russia’s Defense Ministry said. The US coalition didn’t even carry out any airstrikes in Idlib recently.
Earlier, Trump made a rare Sunday address from the White House informing the world that al-Baghdadi was eliminated in northwest Syria in a “daring nighttime raid” with the involvement of US special forces, planes, helicopters and drones. The Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) leader met his end “crying and screaming” in the face of the Americans’ might, he said.
But the Russian Defense Ministry insisted that “there were legitimate questions and doubts about the very fact [of the US operation] and, especially, its success.”
Moscow pointed out that it recorded no US coalition airstrikes in the Idlib area in northwest Syria on Saturday when the raid was held.
It also rejected Trump’s claims that Russian forces opened up the airspace under its control in Syria to American planes to facilitate the operation against the IS leader.
The ministry questioned the very possibility of al-Baghdadi’s presence in Idlib as the area is held by Al-Qaeda offshoot, Jabhat al-Nusra, who have always been mortal enemies of Islamic State.
Moscow noted that Islamic State was crushed in Syria in early 2018 in a joint effort by the government in Damascus and the Russian forces, meaning that yet another report of al-Baghdadi’s demise “bears no effect on the operational situation in Syria or on the actions of the remaining terrorists in Idlib.”
French Defense Minister Florence Parly also questioned the significance of the claimed US achievement, pointing out that the raid only marked “an early retirement for a terrorist [al-Baghdadi], but not for his organization.”
This is awwwwfulllly convenient for Mr. Trump. Give him another cheeseburger in celebration.
LikeLike
If this guy really did lead ISIS, ISIL, and Daesh, and was involved in Iraq and Syria(which is where the Pentagon was carrying out its “7countries in 5 years” policy) then he was “part of the Pentagon’s deal……wasn’t he?
Reminds me of “The death of Bin Laden”….More like, the CIA closing its books on its operatives, who no longer serve any use.(not to mention, the death of “Jeffrey Epstein”) which meant that no trial under American Law was required, and no one asking awkward questions …….
LikeLike
It occurs to me that Trump didn’t (maybe) just “off” the number one terrorist in the world. That distinction belongs to one Dubya Bush, who is cutting brush down in Texas, a free man, when he should be incarcerated (at least) for lying for the purpose of illegally waging war on a sovereign nation — Iraq — shattering it forever, and committing crimes against humanity in the form of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis murdered, millions more refugeed, babies stillborn or suffering birth defects due to Duyba’s use of depleted uranium, etc.
Oh–and then there are Cheney, Powell, Wolfowitz and many many more criminal-terrorists out there roaming free in the former “land of the free and home of the brave….”
LikeLike
The body gets tossed into the ocean ( of course the reason is they want the body buried by a Muslim timeline – how considerate) or it gets blown up ( and left behind – too messy to bag and of course let the Muslims bury him according to their religious timeline again). All sounds reasonable. Of course if neither body was of the right man it might be best not to bring it home.
LikeLike
“Like”!!
LikeLike