alBaghdadi

alBaghdadi, commonly written al-Baghdadi, refers to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the nom de guerre of Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim Ali al-Samarrai (1971–2019), an Iraqi militant who led the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), also known as ISIS. Born in 1971 in Samarra, Iraq, he rose through Islamist militant networks after the 2003 invasion and became the head of the group’s Iraqi faction around 2010, later guiding ISIS as it expanded into Syria and Iraq.

In 2014, al-Baghdadi proclaimed the establishment of the Islamic State and declared himself caliph, asserting leadership over a self-proclaimed caliphate across parts of Iraq and Syria. Under ISIS rule, the organization attempted to govern occupied territories and implement strict sectarian governance, while carrying out mass killings, enslavement, and other abuses. The group attracted foreign fighters and launched a wide-ranging violent campaign, drawing international military intervention and widespread condemnation.

Al-Baghdadi was ki