<img title="ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi" src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2016/oct/Abu-Bakr-al-Baghdadi.jpg" alt="ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi" width="670" height="635" /> ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
Moscow:&nbsp;The Russian army today said it was seeking to verify whether Islamic State chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had been killed after its warplanes hit the group's&nbsp;leaders in a night raid in Syria last month.
The United States said it could not immediately confirm Baghdadi's death.
In a statement, the army said Sukhoi warplanes carried out a 10-minute strike early on May 28 at a location near Raqa, where IS leaders had gathered to plan a pullout by&nbsp;militants from the group's stronghold.
"Senior commanders of the military groups of the so-called IS military council, 30 mid-ranking field commanders&nbsp;and up to 300 militants who provided security for them were&nbsp;eliminated," it said.
"According to information which is being checked through various channels, the leader of ISIL Ibrahim Abu-Bakr al-Baghdadi was also present at the meeting and was eliminated by the strike," it said.
ISIL is an acronym for the so-called IS group, also known as ISIS and Daesh.
The US-led coalition said it could not immediately confirm Baghdadi's death. "We cannot confirm these reports at this time," said Operation Inherent Resolve US Army Colonel Ryan Dillon.&nbsp;
The strike occurred from 2135 to 2145 GMT on May 27 following confirmation of the meeting by a drone. Those killed&nbsp;included the so-called emir of Raqa and the IS security chief,&nbsp;the Russian statement said.
Russia informed the United States about the attack, the&nbsp;statement added.
Elusive Iraqi-born Baghdadi is the world's most-wanted man. The IS supremo has not been seen in public since&nbsp;proclaiming himself "caliph" in the Iraqi city of Mosul three&nbsp;years ago.
His group has earned global notoriety for imposing a hardline form of Islam that has included stonings, beheadings&nbsp;and amputations. Its bastion of Raqa became a magnet for&nbsp;would-be jihadis from other countries.
Baghdadi has been rumoured wounded or killed a number of times in the past.
He has been nicknamed "The Ghost" as he has been reportedly spotted around the Syrian-Iraqi border but his whereabouts have never been confirmed.&nbsp;
In March, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson declared that Baghdadi's death was imminent as "nearly all" of his&nbsp;deputies were dead and "it is only a matter of time" before&nbsp;the IS chief himself met the same fate.
Russia in September 2015 launched a bombing campaign in Syria in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Its&nbsp;efforts against IS jihadists are separate from those of the&nbsp;US-led coalition, which supports Syrian rebels.
The Russian military said earlier this month that on May 29, its planes struck IS convoys attempting to leave Raqa from&nbsp;the south and heading toward Palmyra, killing 80 militants.&nbsp;
On May 31, Russia struck IS contingents located near Palmyra, firing guided missiles from warships deployed off the&nbsp;Syrian coast.
Russia has supported Syrian armed forces, which entered the province of Raqa June 6 and advanced since then in the&nbsp;west and southwest of the province.&nbsp;
US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces have been pushing into Raqa on three fronts, last Tuesday breaking into the IS&nbsp;bastion from the east for the first time.&nbsp;
Iraqi forces are meanwhile battling IS in Mosul, where the jihadists are confined to just a few neighbourhoods in the&nbsp;west of the city.
The fighting in Raqa has caused alarm at the United Nations, whose investigators this week said civilian loss of&nbsp;life was "staggering" due to "excessive" air strikes.&nbsp;

The Russian army today said it was seeking to verify whether Islamic State chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi had been killed after its warplanes hit the group's&nbsp;leaders in a night raid in Syria last month

Russian army says it may have killed IS chief Abu Bakr al- Baghdadi

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Home / News / World News / Article / Russian army says it may have killed IS chief Abu Bakr al- Baghdadi

Russian army says it may have killed IS chief Abu Bakr al- Baghdadi

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