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| Islamic State names its new leader as Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi | |
| (32 minutes later) | |
| The Islamic State (IS) group has confirmed the death of its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and named his successor. | The Islamic State (IS) group has confirmed the death of its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and named his successor. |
| An IS outlet on messaging service Telegram announced that Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Qurashi was the group's new leader and "caliph". | |
| US special forces tracked down Baghdadi in north-west Syria at the weekend and attacked his compound. | US special forces tracked down Baghdadi in north-west Syria at the weekend and attacked his compound. |
| The IS leader fled into a tunnel and killed himself with a suicide vest. | The IS leader fled into a tunnel and killed himself with a suicide vest. |
| Baghdadi was declared leader of the extremist group in 2014 when IS took control of large parts of Iraq and Syria and imposed its rule over the civilian population. | |
| In an audio message, IS also confirmed the death of spokesman Abu al-Hasan al-Muhajir - who was killed in a separate joint US-Kurdish operation on 27 October. The Saudi national had been considered a potential successor to Baghdadi. | In an audio message, IS also confirmed the death of spokesman Abu al-Hasan al-Muhajir - who was killed in a separate joint US-Kurdish operation on 27 October. The Saudi national had been considered a potential successor to Baghdadi. |
| New IS spokesman Abu Hamza al-Qurashi also called on Muslims to swear allegiance to Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi. | |
| Who is Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Qurashi? | |
| Hashemi's name is not known to global security forces, and is believed to be a nom de guerre. | |
| IS did not release many details about the new leader or release a photo, but they did claim he was a veteran jihadist fighter who had fought against the West. | |
| The group also made clear that he claims to be descended from the Prophet Muhammad's Quraysh tribe - something generally held by pre-modern Sunni scholars as being a key qualification for becoming a caliph, the religious-political ruler of a caliphate. | |
| What is the context? | |
| IS declared the creation of a "caliphate" - a state governed in accordance with Sharia - after seizing control of huge swathes of Iraq in 2014. It proclaimed Baghdadi as "Caliph Ibrahim" and demanded allegiance from Muslims worldwide. | |
| Despite the demise of its physical caliphate in March, IS remains a battle-hardened and well-disciplined force. | |
| The group still has between 14,000 and 18,000 "members" in Iraq and Syria, including up to 3,000 foreigners, according to a recent US report. | |
| Before the announcement, the BBC's Mina al-Lami said: "If IS chooses to appoint someone who is not a Qurashi, then perhaps it is an implicit acknowledgement that the 'caliphate' is no more." | |
| With the group's declaration, it is trying to show that this is not the case. | |
| Meanwhile, the US has released its first images of the raid that targeted Baghdadi. | Meanwhile, the US has released its first images of the raid that targeted Baghdadi. |
| The head of US Central Command, Gen Kenneth McKenzie, said the destroyed buildings were left looking like "a parking lot with large potholes". | The head of US Central Command, Gen Kenneth McKenzie, said the destroyed buildings were left looking like "a parking lot with large potholes". |