Russia has termed ISIS chief – Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as the “brainchild” of the US and said that Moscow still cannot verify Washington’s claim about Baghdadi’s killing.
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Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Friday that Washington had facilitated the creation of the ISIS and that Baghdadi “is (or was, if he is already dead) a brainchild of the United States.”
“ISIS arose after the illegal invasion in Iraq, the collapse of the Iraqi state and the release of extremists from prisons by the Americans. Therefore, to a certain extent, the Americans eliminated the one they gave birth to if it actually happened,” he told Russia-24 news channel.
In a televised address, US President Donald Trump announced last week that Baghdadi had blown himself up and died “like a dog” after the US forces trapped him inside a dead-end tunnel during a raid in Syria’s northwestern Idlib Province on October 27.
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However, the US did not show Baghdadi’s remains and claimed they were dumped at sea within 24 hours of his death. Lavrov emphasised that his country wanted “more information” on the alleged killing of Baghdadi at the hands of the US troops
“Everything was solemnly and triumphantly announced, but our military is still studying additional facts, and they cannot confirm yet much of what the US has said,” he said.
Trump’s statement on the killing of Baghdadi was met with scepticism even inside Washington, with US Central Command chief General Frank McKenzie saying he could not confirm that Baghdadi was “whimpering and crying” in his final moments as the US president claimed.
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Lavrov’s remarks about Daesh’s birth as a result of US policies echo Trump’s own views during the 2016 presidential campaign, where he named former President Barack Obama and his secretary of state for five years, Hillary Clinton, as the main founders of the terror outfit.
“In fact, in many respects, you know they honour President Obama, Isis is honouring President Obama. He is the founder of ISIS. He is the founder of ISIS. He’s the founder. He founded ISIS,” he said during a rally in August 2018, using an acronym for Daesh. “And I would say the co-founder would be crooked Hillary Clinton. Co-founder. Crooked Hillary Clinton,” Trump added.
