Updated 7:31 a.m.
President Donald Trump said Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead after a U.S. military operation in Syria targeted the Islamic State group leader.
Trump said in a statement to the nation from the White House's Diplomatic Room that "al-Baghdadi is dead" — fulfilling the top national security priority of his administration.
No U.S. personnel were lost in the mission.
Al-Baghdadi presided over IS's global jihad and became arguably the world's most wanted man.
The announcement comes as Trump has been on the receiving end of bipartisan criticism in Washington following the recent pullback of U.S. troops from northeastern Syria. Critics feared that move will allow the militant group to regain strength after it had lost vast stretches of territory it had once controlled
A U.S. official told The Associated Press late Saturday that al-Baghdadi was targeted in Syria's northwestern Idlib province. The official said confirmation that the IS chief was killed in an explosion is pending. No other details were available. The official was not authorized to discuss the strike and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Read More: Trump Says Islamic State Leader Was Killed In Special Operations Raid (via NPR.org)
