The leader of both the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, previously thought to be dead, seems to have broken the silence after 11 months through the use of an audio recording

In the recording, the leader mocks the United States, calls on jihadis to rally against the Syrian regime and insists that ISIS stays, even though it lost territory.

US Office of the Director of National Intelligence spokesman said: “We are aware of the audio tape purported to be of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and are taking steps to examine it. While we have no reason to doubt its authenticity, we do not have verification at this point.”

After paying attention to the audio recording, it seems to have been recorded quite recently, as it mentions the Nortk Korean nuclear threats against Japan and the US and Syrian peace talks.

The appearance of the recording puts to rest the claims made by the Russian military that they had almost certainly killed the ISIS leader in an airstrike near Raqqa on May 28. US officials say that ISIS has been forced out of Raqqa and Mosul, and that Baghdadi may be somewhere in the middle Euphrates River Valley.

Source: cnn.com