- Pentagon officials on Monday said they were considering releasing videos and photos from the military operation that killed ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
- "I think what you'll see here in the coming days is we'll set up some operational tactical-level briefings from Central Command, and you'll be provided some videos and photos of that," US Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said Monday.
- It's unclear if the Pentagon is considering releasing footage from Baghdadi's final moments. The
Defense Department occasionally releases videos and photos to justify US military action. - Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Pentagon officials on Monday said they were considering releasing informational videos and photos from the military operation that killed ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
US Army Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said he was "not prepared at this time" to release the videos of the raid but added some of the materials were going through a declassification process.
It was unclear if the Pentagon was considering releasing the footage from Baghdadi's final moments. The Defense Department occasionally releases videos and photographs for evidence used to justify US military action against a target.
"I think what you'll see here in the coming days is we'll set up some operational tactical-level briefings from Central Command, and you'll be provided some videos and photos of that," Milley said, referencing the combatant command overseeing the Middle East and South Asia, during a press conference on Monday.
Milley referenced the video footage and photos of the raid and added that he would not comment on "what we do have and don't have."
Baghdadi was killed in an early-morning raid on Sunday on his compound in the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib. Soldiers from the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment, or Delta Force, reportedly conducted the raid, which resulted in Baghdadi fleeing into a tunnel and detonating his suicide vest.
No US troops were killed in the mission, according to military officials.
The ISIS leader, who is believed to have been 48 years old, took over the terrorist organization in 2010 after two of his predecessors were killed.
President Donald Trump congratulated the US Special Forces and hailed the mission as a victory.
"Last night, the United States brought the world's number one terrorist leader to justice," Trump said Sunday. "Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead. He was the founder and leader of ISIS, the most ruthless and violent terror organization anywhere in the world."
"Last night was a great night for the United States and for the world," Trump added. "A brutal killer, one who has caused so much hardship and death, has violently been eliminated. He will never again harm another innocent man, woman, or child. He died like a dog. He died like a coward. The world is now a much safer place."