The US has blacklisted the new leader of the Islamic State (IS) jihadist militia on terrorists. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said yesterday that Amir Mohammed Abdel Rahman al-Mawli was named the new leader of the group after the killing of ex-leader Abu Bakr al-Bagdadi during a US military operation in October.
ISIS had previously given the name of the new IS chief with Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Kuraishi – but the US concluded that IS used a battle name. Mawli had previously been involved in the al-Qaeda terrorist network in Iraq and was responsible for torturing members of the Yazidis religious minority, Pompeo said.
„We have destroyed the caliphate and are committed to defeating IS regardless of who they name as its leader,“ said the Secretary of State. His ministry had previously exposed a $ 5 million bounty for clues leading to Mawli’s capture.
