Easy Qur'an Reading with Baghdadi Primer ( Paperback )

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There are competing versions of how he came to jihad. One suggests he was a militant jihadist during the time of Saddam Hussein. Others have pointed to the four years he was held at Camp Bucca as the root of his radicalisation.

When Baghdadi graduated from the University of Baghdad in 1996, he enrolled in the recently-established Saddam University for Islamic Studies where he studied for a master’s in Quranic recitation, his favorite subject. His family’s Baathist connections undoubtedly helped him get into the highly-selective graduate program. Baghdadi’s master’s thesis was a commentary on an obscure medieval text on Quranic recitation. His task was to reconcile various versions of the manuscript. While tedious, it involved little imagination and no questioning of the content—a perfect project for a dogmatist. He received his master’s degree in 1999 and immediately enrolled in Saddam University’s doctoral program in Quranic studies. a b Estrin, Daniel (October 27, 2020). "Pentagon Says 2 Men Killed In Baghdadi Raid Were Combatants But Offers Little Evidence". NPR . Retrieved March 9, 2020.And, despite being from Iraq, Baghdadi and his followers will have to negotiate the same complex minefield of competing Sunni interests – including his current allies in Ba'athist insurgent groups, who are ideologically very different. These frictions have led to the downfall of a previous al-Qaida incarnation in Iraq. Read more: Germany's Syria conundrum People who knew al-Baghdadi have described him as an individual who clung to religious teachings in his youth Image: NDR a b c d e f Cohen, Zachary; Starr, Barbara; Browne, Ryan (October 30, 2019). "Pentagon releases first images from raid that killed ISIS leader". CNN. Archived from the original on October 31, 2019 . Retrieved October 31, 2019. His death is another strike against Isis’ purported legitimacy, leaving it less able to claim to be any different from other violent extremist groups. How and where did he die?

Working with allies, the United States can bomb terrorist hideouts or raid them to arrest and kill their operatives. US intelligence, alone and in combination with allies, is far better able to monitor terrorist havens. Drones and other platforms have greatly expanded US strike options, and special operations forces are far better resourced and focused on the terrorism problem, too. None of this is entirely consistent with his rise to power in the leadership of al-Qaida in Iraq in 2010 – and later of Isis – during which he murdered prominent Sunnis as well as Shia civilians in bombings. The US Kurdish allies in Syria — the same ones the United States abandoned when it abruptly withdrew most of its forces from Syria and greenlit a Turkish invasion — reportedly played a key role in providing intelligence for the raid. So, too, did Iraqi allies. This is the norm, not the exception. Much of the intelligence war on terrorism is done by, with, and through allies, which have on-the-ground information as well as a capacity to act locally, neither of which can be replaced without massive US troop deployments. The president himself would do well to learn these lessons. His constant carping on European and other allies risks jeopardizing one of America’s most important counterterrorism assets. Abandoning key partners like the SDF is short-sighted and sends a message that America cannot be trusted. Laessing, Ulf; Fahmy, Omar (October 29, 2019). Oatis, Jonathan (ed.). "Islamic State silent on Baghdadi death as it searches for successor". Reuters. Additional reporting by Yousef Saba. Archived from the original on October 31, 2019 . Retrieved October 30, 2019.I was appointed to rule you but I am not the best among you,” he proclaimed. “If you see me acting truly, then follow me. If you see me acting falsely, then advise and guide me…. If I disobey God, then do not obey me.” This was a paraphrase of what the first caliph, Abu Bakr, had said when he was elected by Muhammad’s comrades. a b c Safi, Michael; Chulov, Martin (October 27, 2019). "Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi killed in US raid, Trump confirms". The Guardian. Archived from the original on October 27, 2019 . Retrieved October 27, 2019.

The raid was launched based on an intelligence effort to locate the leader of ISIL by the CIA's Special Activities Center. [11] The New York Times reported that, according to two U.S. officials, the CIA obtained the original intelligence on Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi following the arrests of one of his wives and a courier, after which the CIA worked closely with Iraqi and Kurdish intelligence officials in Iraq and Syria. [12]Baghdadi threw himself into the writings of those Muslim Brothers who had embraced jihadism. Under their tutelage he grew increasingly impatient with the Brotherhood mainstream, which he felt was made up of “people of words, not action.” Bulos, Nabih (October 28, 2019). "The quiet man who harbored Islamic State leader Baghdadi". Los Angeles Timea. Archived from the original on November 5, 2019 . Retrieved November 6, 2019. Mizokami, Kyle (October 28, 2019). "The Helicopters That Made the U.S. Army's ISIS Raid Possible". Popular Mechanics. Archived from the original on October 29, 2019 . Retrieved October 31, 2019.