City
Epaper

Baghdadi's sister captured by Turkey in Syria: Report

By IANS | Updated: November 5, 2019 11:30 IST

Turkish officials have claimed that the sister of slain Islamic State (IS) chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has been captured in northern Syria, a BBC report said on Tuesday.

Open in App

The 65-year-old, named as Rasmiya Awad, was detained in a raid on Monday near the town of Azaz, the officials said.

They added that the arrest could yield valuable intelligence about IS.

Little is known about Baghdadi's sister and the BBC has not yet been able to independently verify the identity of the arrested woman.

Baghdadi had five brothers and several sisters, although it is not clear if they are all still alive, according to a New York Times report.

Experts have said that it was not clear how much useful intelligence Awad could provide, or how much time she spent with Baghdadi.

"I don't think she'd be privy to any imminent attack plans, but she might know smuggling routes. She might know networks that Baghdadi trusted, people that he trusted, networks in Iraq that helped her facilitate her own travel and her family's travel," Mike Pregent, a counter terrorism expert at the Washington-based think-tank, Hudson Institute told BBC News.

"This should be able to give our US intelligence and other allied intelligence officers a view into (IS) networks and how they moved family members, how they travelled and who they trusted."

US President Donald Trump announced the death of Baghdadi at a press conference at the White House on October 27.

According to Trump, Baghdadi detonated his suicide vest after fleeing into a tunnel during a US raid on his hideout in Syria's Idlib province.

Trump said DNA tests were carried out to verify Baghdadi's identity, confirming his death.

After the raid, the compound was destroyed in an air strike.

Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Qurashi has since been named as IS's new leader and "caliph".

( With inputs from IANS )

Tags: BaghdadiBbc NewsusNew York Times
Open in App

Related Stories

InternationalEarthquake in Russia: Quake of Magnitude 8.0 Strikes Kamchatka Peninsula; Tsunami Warning Issued

InternationalNASA Layoffs: 20% or 3,870 Employees to Exit US Space Agency

InternationalMichigan Plane Crash: 2 Killed After Small Aircraft Crashes Into Storage Facility Near Lowell City Airport in US

International'System-Wide Ground Stop': Alaska Airlines Grounded Over 200 Planes Due to IT Outage

International‘This Might Hit You Hard’: NATO Chief Mark Rutte's Warning to India, China, and Brazil Over Russia Ties Amid Ukraine War

International Realted Stories

InternationalTwo dead, five missing after Chile copper mine collapse

InternationalThe Third Eye: ‘Tailored’ Intelligence serves no purpose

InternationalHuman rights body slams Pak judiciary for extending remand of Baloch leaders by 20 days

InternationalEarthquake of magnitude 3.0 strikes New York

InternationalIDF hits 130 Hamas sites, expands tunnel hunt across Gaza: Report