THE leader of the Islamic State (IS) group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, has appeared in a new video for the first time in five years.

Five years ago, al-Baghdadi mounted the pulpit of a mosque in Iraq to declare himself the head of a rapidly expanding terrorist organization.

Since then, his group, the Islamic State, has transfixed the world with its apocalyptic violence while he has remained a mystery. Spottings were rare. Rumors swirled that he was wounded or dead. The United States put US$25 million on his head and still failed to find him.

On Monday, he reappeared, leaning on a cushion with an assault rifle at his side, in a video seeking to rally his followers after the loss of the group’s territory in Iraq and Syria and its execution of one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in years, on Easter in Sri Lanka.

“Our battle today is a battle of attrition, and we will prolong it for the enemy, and they must know that the jihad will continue until Judgment Day,” he said in the video.

The message he intended to send was clear, analysts said: The Islamic State still exists, he is still in charge, and its international network of militants will continue to launch painful, unpredictable attacks. If he felt compelled to reveal himself now, after years in hiding, they said, it was to reassert his authority in the face of a punishing loss in Syria.

(SD-Agencies)