ISIS Leader Confident in Mosul Defense, Rules Out Retreat

Pentagon Claims Comments Prove Baghdadi Losing Control

In a newly released audio recording, ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi expressed confidence that his forces would succeed in defending Mosul from an ongoing offensive by what he referred to as “enemies of God.,” saying he is convinced this is the prelude to victory.

Mosul is ISIS’ largest city, with the metro area home to about 1.5 million people. It is their last major city within Iraqi territory, and the US has presented their imminent defeat in the city as spelling the effective end to the ISIS caliphate.

Baghdadi insisted there could be no surrender in the fight, a statement which is literally true since the US has insisted they intend to kill every ISIS fighter who attempts to flee the city with airstrikes  Baghdadi suggested there would be retaliatory suicide attacks abroad that would wreak havoc on “unbelievers,” and “make their blood flow as rivers.”

The Pentagon, always upbeat about wars everywhere, said Baghdadi’s confident statement proved he is losing control of ISIS in general, and that he was desperately trying to prevent infighting, adding “we don’t believe it is going to work.”

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.