KRG: Baghdadi death significant, but fight against ISIS not over
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – A spokesperson for the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has described the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the so-called Islamic State, as a significant step to defeating the terror group.
In a statement released on Monday, KRG spokesperson Jotiar Adil said Baghdadi’s death is important but “does not signal the end of the [terror] group.”
“The catalysts behind the emergence of the extremist group remain unaddressed,” the statement read, as such, the KRG calls on the Federal Government of Iraq and all concerned parties “to increase efforts to prevent the re-emergence of the violent terrorist organizations.”
The statement comes following a US raid in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib on Saturday night, where Baghdadi was killed.
“Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead,” US President Donald Trump said at the White House hours after the successful operation.
Read More: ISIS leader Baghdadi killed in US raid in Syria
Adil, meanwhile, highlighted the efforts of the Kurdistan Region’s Peshmerga forces who “were the first to succeed in the battle against ISIS and retake territory” the extremist group occupied when it emerged in 2014.
The spokesperson “reaffirmed the commitment of the Kurdistan Regional Government to the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS and to the continued confrontation of extremist ideologies in the region.”
Senior Kurdistan Region officials warned on Sunday that international governments need to remain vigilant in facing remnants of the Islamic State despite Baghdadi’s death.
