ISIS Chief And Family Blended In Among Syrians Uprooted By War
NDTV
Locals believed that Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Quraishi was a Syrian merchant from Aleppo who had brought his family to the relative safety of Atmeh near the Turkish border, far from the frontlines of the Syrian conflict.
In a corner of Syria crammed with people uprooted by 11 years of civil war, the leader of Islamic State and his family hid in plain sight: they kept to themselves, neighbours did not pry into each other's past, the rent was paid on time.
The status quo was shattered on Thursday night, when U.S. special forces swept into the town of Atmeh in northwest Syria to raid his hideout.
Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Quraishi, head of one of the world's most feared terrorist groups, blew himself up to evade capture, killing several family members and others in the blast, according to the United States.
His death marks a blow to ISIS as they reemerge as a deadly threat in Syria and Iraq.
