Pentagon Releases First Images of Operation Against al-Baghdadi’s Hideout
Five days after the U.S. military operation against ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Pentagon released images taken from video footage of the operation. Al-Baghdadi was killed during this operation. Details regarding the operation have also been released to the media.
The images released by the U.S. Department of Defense are scenes from a video recording of the military operation conducted by American special forces units against Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the “Islamic State” (ISIS).
In this regard, the Pentagon has provided explanations to the media about how the ISIS leader was killed.
The German news agency released a report from Washington on Thursday, November 9th (October 31st), publishing details of the U.S. military operation against Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
The images released by U.S. Department of Defense officials are the first images of this operation to be made public.
Details About the Military Operation
These black and white images are all taken from scenes of video footage of the operation. The images show American special forces personnel approaching a wall surrounding a compound on foot. Al-Baghdadi was hiding in this compound.
On the night of Sunday, October 27th, American soldiers were flown by helicopter over this compound from one of the U.S. military bases located in Syria. The images show a relatively empty courtyard of a residential complex.
In its report, the German news agency wrote that the walls surrounding this compound were destroyed by bombs within seconds. This compound was located a few kilometers from the Turkish border.
What happened inside the building and after American soldiers entered is not visible in these images.
The images also show this compound before and after the operation. It is said that U.S. military forces completely destroyed this compound after the operation ended.
The news website “Spiegel Online” also published a report quoting General Kenneth McKenzie, commander of CENTCOM, about the operation, stating that after complete destruction, the compound had been transformed into a parking lot with numerous holes and craters.
In the statement from the commander of the U.S. Central Command, it was mentioned that besides the ISIS leader, five other members of the group were also killed. McKenzie also announced that two other individuals affiliated with ISIS were arrested. In addition, U.S. military forces successfully rescued eleven children.
The CENTCOM commander said the U.S. military operation against al-Baghdadi’s hideout was a “difficult, complex, and precise” operation.
Source: DW
