‘His Miserable Life Was Terminated’: Trump Touts Slaying of Top ISIS Leader in Iraq
The president and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth praised the operation as an emblem of their military philosophy.
The Washington Post/The Washington Post via Getty Images
President Donald Trump touted the slaying of a high-ranking leader in the Islamic State as a success of his “PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH” military philosophy.
Abdallah Maki Mosleh al-Rifai was in charge of the terrorist group’s operations in Iraq and Syria. Along with another ISIS operative, he was killed by a precision airstrike delivered by the United States in coordination with the Iraqi government, according to a press release from the Pentagon.
Trump praised the success of the operation in a Friday night post on Truth Social.
“Today the fugitive leader of ISIS in Iraq was killed. He was relentlessly hunted down by our intrepid warfighters,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post Friday night. “His miserable life was terminated, along with another member of ISIS, in coordination with the Iraqi Government and the Kurdish Regional Government. PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH!”
CENTCOM Forces Kill ISIS Chief of Global Operations Who Also Served as ISIS #2
— U.S. Central Command (@CENTCOM) March 15, 2025
On March 13, U.S. Central Command forces, in cooperation with Iraqi Intelligence and Security Forces, conducted a precision airstrike in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, that killed the Global ISIS #2 leader,… pic.twitter.com/rWeEoUY7Lw
The commander of the U.S. Central Command, Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, called al-Rifai “one of the most important ISIS members in the entire global ISIS organization.”
“We will continue to kill terrorists and dismantle their organizations that threaten our homeland,” he said.
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According to the Pentagon statement, American and Iraqi soldiers investigated the strike site and found the two dead ISIS operatives wearing undetonated suicide vests. They identified al-Rifai based on a match with DNA collected during a previous raid where he “narrowly escaped.”
Trump’s post was shared on X by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, who echoed the president’s words: “Peace Through Strength, every single day,” he wrote in the caption.
Pete Hegseth
Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu via Getty Images
As the Pentagon’s head, Hegseth has sought to focus the military around “lethality, meritocracy, accountability, standards, and readiness” as he relayed in a “message to the force” soon after he was narrowly confirmed by the Senate in January.
Hegseth was one of the president’s most controversial Cabinet picks, not just because the former Fox News host and veteran has no experience leading an organization anywhere near the size of the U.S. military.
He also faced scandal after scandal during his nomination process—including allegations of sexual assault and alcohol abuse, which he denied. Hegseth had also previously said that he opposed women serving in combat roles but reversed his opinion on the matter after being nominated.
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