Will the ISIS die with Bhagdadi: Quite unlikely

Tehran, April 27: Is Abu Bakr Al-Bhagdadi really dead or is it part of another strategy to lower the heat on him.

The news of Bhagdadi dying has not emerged for the first time. In the month of October 2014 there was similar news about his death.

This time around it was first reported that he was badly injured in an airstrike last week and today it has been reported that he has died. [ISIS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi reportedly dead, says Radio Iran]

The ISIS has however, denied this news and say that he is doing well.

In fact he is currently at the Anbar province commanding his forces, the ISIS also clarified.

Will ISIS die with Bhagdadi?

The most brutal of all the outfits is without a doubt the ISIS.

The leader in Bhagdadi is what has made them extremely fierce and this man who was once a talented footballer went on to become one of the most dreaded terrorists in the world.

The big question is will the ISIS too die if Bhagdadi is dead.

There is no doubt that the morale of the forces will drop to an all time low. However, it is unlikely that the ISIS will die. [IS chief Baghdadi: From average schoolboy to world's most wanted man]

In fact there is the danger of it becoming more resurgent as the fighters could come back with a vengeance.

Bhagdadi is not a run of the mill terrorist leader. He calls himself the Caliph and each and every member of the ISIS vouches for that.

A caliph is technically a representative of the Prophet and Bhagdadi has termed himself just that.

He has in fact managed to buy the imagination of his recruits with the concept of the Caliph and the Caliphate.

He has managed to convince a lot many people that he is establishing the Caliphate and the final battle will be fought in the Vatican.

Taking all this into account, it is unlikely that the ISIS would die.

The fighters have been told about their purpose and in all probability they will continue with their gruesome war.

Bhagdadi was not self centric

Bhagdadi was never self centric as a leader. He knew that he could die in the war and he was careful enough to appoint many persons who were directly under him.

The second in command was well in place. In fact if Bhagdadi is really dead, then the ISIS will not have a vaccum for too long.

Bhagdadi will be succeeded by Abu Alaa Afri, a former physics teacher.

Afri was always Bhagdadi's second in command and he is well known to the fighters.

Bhagdadi was also careful not to make the Osama Bin Laden kind of mistake. He always wanted a soldier to be in command.

Bin Laden chose a cleric in Ayman Al-Zawahiri over Ilyas Kashmiri a soldier who was well versed with the fighters.

Afri in fact has been on the ground both in Iraq and Syria and him taking over from Bhagdadi will be objected by none. Hence this ensures that the ISIS will not have a leadership crisis.

Is Bhagdadi really dead?

The source is Iran radio. Iran is one nation who would want to see the back of Bhagdadi at any cost.

For Iran, Bhagdadi was the biggest problem as he had taken the Sunni vs Shia battle a bit too far.

Intelligence Bureau officials say that the information is contradictory.

Iran could be putting out this information to demoralize the ISIS and its men. The ISIS on the other hand states that he is alive. [Blow to ISIS? Terror outfit's chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi 'seriously injured' in air strike: Reports]

IB officials say that at times when the heat generated on a leader is too high, terror groups themselves float rumours about the death of the leader.

This gives them some breathing space and in the meantime they are moved to safer places.

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