The leader of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria has been killed, Iraq’s prime minister announced on Friday.

Abdallah Maki Mosleh al-Rifai, or “Abu Khadija,” was killed in an operation by members of the Iraqi national intelligence service along with U.S.-led coalition forces, Iraq’s Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said in a statement.

The prime minister described al-Rifai as “one of the most dangerous terrorists in Iraq and the world.”

U.S. President Donald Trump reacted to the news on his social media platform Truth Social, saying al-Rifai’s “miserable life was terminated.”

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“Today the fugitive leader of ISIS in Iraq was killed,” Trump wrote Friday night. “He was relentlessly hunted down by our intrepid warfighters. 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!” the president added.

U.S. Central Command said in a statement that its forces, in cooperation with Iraqi Intelligence and security forces, conducted an airstrike in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, that killed the “Global ISIS #2 leader, Chief of Global Operations and the Delegated Committee Emir – Abdallah Makki Muslih al-Rifai, alias ‘Abu Khadijah,’ and one other ISIS operative.”

U.S. President Donald Trump reacted by saying al-Rifai’s “miserable life was terminated.” (Getty Images)

“As the Emir of ISIS’ most senior decision-making body, Abu Khadijah maintained responsibility for operations, logistics, and planning conducted by ISIS globally, and directs a significant portion of finance for the group’s global organization,” CENTCOM said.

Islamic State/Iraq/Syria: A masked Islamic State soldier poses holding the ISIL banner somewhere in the deserts of Iraq or Syria. ISIL publicity image, 2015.  (Pictures from History/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)

After the strike, U.S. and Iraqi forces moved to the location of the strike and found both dead ISIS targets who were each wearing unexploded “suicide vests” and who had multiple weapons, CENTCOM said.

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Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaybani, left, speaks during a news conference with his Iraqi counterpart Fouad Hussein following their meeting, in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, March14, 2025. (AP)

U.S. and Iraqi forces were able to identify al-Rifai using DNA collected in a previous raid where he narrowly escaped.

“Abu Khadijah was 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 and U.S., allied and partner personnel in the region and beyond,” Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, commander at CENTCOM, said in a statement.

Marking the International Day to Combat Islamophobia, Guterres speaks out against bigotry, xenophobia and discrimination.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has expressed concern over “a disturbing rise in anti-Muslim bigotry”, calling on governments to protect religious freedom and for online platforms to curb hate speech.

Guterres made the remarks on Saturday to mark the International Day to Combat Islamophobia marked every year on March 15.

Rights groups around the world and the UN have noted a rise in Islamophobia, anti-Arab bias and anti-Semitism since the start of Israel’s 17-month war on Gaza.

“We are witnessing a disturbing rise in anti-Muslim bigotry. From racial profiling and discriminatory policies that violate human rights and dignity, to outright violence against individuals and places of worship,” the UN chief said in a video post on X. “This is part of a wider scourge of intolerance, extremist ideologies and attacks against religious groups and vulnerable populations.”

He called on governments, without specifying any one nation, to “foster social cohesion and protect religious freedom”.

“Online platforms must curb hate speech and harassment. And we must all speak out against bigotry, xenophobia and discrimination,” he added.

We are witnessing a disturbing rise in anti-Muslim bigotry that is part of a wider scourge of intolerance & attacks against religious groups & vulnerable populations.

This International Day to Combat Islamophobia, let’s work together to uphold equality, human rights & dignity. pic.twitter.com/QIO1TeWME5

— António Guterres (@antonioguterres) March 15, 2025

Meanwhile, UN Under-Secretary-General Miguel Angel Moratinos said Muslims were facing “institutional discrimination and socioeconomic restrictions”.

“Such biases are manifested in the stigmatisation and the unwarranted racial profiling of Muslims and are reinforced by biased media representations, and by the anti-Muslim rhetoric and policies of some political leaders,” he said in a speech to the UN General Assembly.

Rights advocates have for years raised concerns about the stigma faced by Muslims and Arabs because of how some people conflate those communities with armed groups.

At present, many pro-Palestinian activists, including in Western nations such as the United States, have complained and say that their advocacy for Palestinian rights is wrongly labelled by their critics as support for Hamas in Gaza.

In recent weeks, rights watchdogs have published data noting record levels of anti-Muslim hate incidents and hate speeches in countries such as the United Kingdom, the US and India, among others.

A report released by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) on Tuesday said that the 8,658 complaints regarding anti-Muslim and anti-Arab incidents last year – representing a 7.4 percent rise year on year – was the highest number since the group began compiling data in 1996.