A coup attempt against al Baghdadi was orchestrated by Moroccan jihadists

A Moroccan jihadist, who fought for the terrorist organization «ISIS», recalled from his prison cell memories of his days as an ISIS fighter. Detained in a Kurdish-Syrian prison, Moroccan national Mohamed A., revealed that the self-proclaimed leader of the «Islamic State» Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, was targeted by a coup attempt launched by Moroccan jihadists.

Speaking to the Spanish news agency EFE, the Tetouan-native said that «Moroccan jihadists planned to overthrow» the terrorist organization’s leader. However, he stressed that he did not know whether «Caliph Brahim» survived the coup attempt or not.

In February, media reports suggested that a «plan moved against al Baghdadi led to a firefight between foreign fighters and the fugitive terrorist chief’s bodyguards», quoting regional intelligence officials.

According to British newspaper the Guardian, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi survived the failed coup attempt, which is «believed to have taken place on 10 January in a village near Hajin in the Euphrates River valley».

A man that no one was able to meet

Regional intelligence officials believe that the man behind the plot is an Algerian fighter, known as Abu Muath al-Jazairi, the same source reported. ISIS, and without stating that he was the initial plotter of this coup attempt, «placed a bounty» on his head. According to the same source, al-Jazairi is believed to be one of ISIS' senior members.

Despite rumors suggesting that he survived the coup attempt, the head of the terrorist organization is nowhere to be found. Efforts made by the US-led anti-ISIS coalition, the Syrian Democratic Forces, Russians, and Iraqis couldn’t spot the most wanted man in the world, French channel TV5 Monde reports.

Even among his followers and troops, the man remains very discreet, the Moroccan jihadist said. «No one was able to see Abu Bakr, we do not know if this caliphate exists», he concluded.

To this day, ISIS leader al Baghdadi is still on the run. The last time he appeared in public was in 2014, the Associated Press (AP) recalled. Since then, claims surfaced, indicating that the man was killed in one of the several US-led coalition airstrikes.