WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Earlier in the day, Daesh terrorists confirmed the group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead, Alsumaria TV channel reported citing a source in the Iraqi province of Nineveh.
"Despite all the helpful reports to us from every source imaginable I’m unable to confirm or deny where he is, or whether he’s alive or dead," Townsend told reporters.
Townsend said that he had no indications Baghdadi was killed, but also no proof he was alive either.
When pressed, he said "I don’t have a clue," if the terror group’s leader was alive or dead.
Furthermore, he noted that Baghdadi’s death would not end the threat the Islamic State poses, although it might make US partners in the region happy.
"I just know it would make me feel a lot better if he were dead," he added.
On June 23, US Operation Inherent Resolve Col. Ryan Dillon said that the US has no conclusive evidence to believe that Baghdadi was killed in Russian airstrikes. However, the US "certainly would welcome the death of al-Baghdadi, but we do not have any definitive proof to lead us believe that this is accurate," he added.
Al-Baghdadi appeared in the media for the first time in 2014 when he declared the creation of a caliphate in the Middle East. Since then, the media have reported several times about the death of the Daesh leader, though the information has never been confirmed.
