U.S. Releases New Details On Al-Baghdadi Raid

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By Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

The U.S. general who oversaw the raid on Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has provided the most detailed account yet of the operation.

The Pentagon released the first government photos and video clips of the nighttime operation

Baghdadi died on October 26 by detonating a suicide vest as he fled into a dead-end tunnel as elite U.S. special forces closed in.

General Kenneth "Frank" McKenzie, head of U.S. Central Command, said on October 31 that Baghdadi's remains were buried at sea within 24 hours of his death.

The Pentagon released the first government photos and video clips of the nighttime operation.

One showed Delta Force commandos approaching the walls of the compound in which Baghdadi and others were found. Another video showed American air strikes on militants who fired at helicopters carrying U.S. commandos to the compound.

The military also bombed the compound after the soldiers completed the mission to prevent it from becoming a shrine to al-Baghdadi.

The U.S. commandos launched from an undisclosed location inside Syria for the one-hour helicopter ride to the compound, McKenzie said.

The U.S. commandos launched from an undisclosed location inside Syria

Two children died with al-Baghdadi when he detonated a bomb vest, McKenzie said, adding that this was one fewer than originally reported.

Eleven other children were escorted from the site unharmed.

Four women and two men who were wearing suicide vests and refused to surrender inside the compound were killed, McKenzie said.

The general said the military dog that was injured during the raid, a four-year veteran with U.S. Special Operations Command, has returned to duty.

Substantial amounts of documentation and electronics were seized during the raid, McKenzie said, without elaborating.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP

Copyright (c) 2019. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.

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