ISIS names successor to slain leader al-Baghdadi

Image: Iraqi youth watch the news of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghd
Men watch the news of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's death in Najaf, Iraq, on Monday. Copyright Alaa Al-Marjani
Copyright Alaa Al-Marjani
By Saphora Smith and Alexander Smith with NBC News World News
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The militant group named Abu Ibrahim Hashimi al-Quraishi as the new leader in a message posted by its official media wing.

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ISIS announced the name of its new leader Thursday after Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in a American-led raid in Syria, according to the security consulting firm and NBC News partner Flashpoint.

The militant group named Abu Ibrahim Hashimi al-Quraishi as al-Baghdadi's replacement in a message posted by its official media wing, Flashpoint said.

It was the first time ISIS had acknowledged the death of al-Baghdadi as well as that of another senior figure named Abu Hassan al-Muhajir. President Donald Trump had identified al-Muhajir as al-Baghdadi's "number one replacement."

While al-Baghdadi's death constitutes a significant blow to the militant group, experts have warned that it will not necessarily spell an end to the violent extremists trying to reconstitute their caliphate.

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