A new voice recording purportedly made by ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi suggests the group’s ability to control its fighters “has been severely reduced,” Col. John Dorrian, spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve, said Thursday. Al-Baghdadi reportedly called for ISIS fighters to stand strong in their defense of the city of Mosul in the message, according to The New York Times. It has been almost a year since al-Baghdadi addressed his followers, and while the remarks indicated knowledge of the recent ISF and coalition efforts to retake the Iraqi city of Mosul, the name of the city was not mentioned in the 31-minute recording. The Pentagon has not verified the authenticity of the tape, Dorrian said during the Thursday briefing. But noting reports that some ISIS fighters have abandoned their posts in Mosul, Dorrian said the recording was “quite clearly an effort on the part of Daesh to communicate with its fighters,” using another term for ISIS. If the message did come from al-Baghdadi, Dorrian said, it was “the type of thing that a leader who’s losing command and control” might say. On al-Baghdadi’s whereabouts, Dorrian said, “if we knew where he is, he would be killed at once.”
B-21 Bomber Shelter May Reveal Size of Secret Jet
March 3, 2021
The Air Force may have inadvertently revealed the size of the secret B-21 bomber with the release of an image of a temporary shelter for the airplane. The service is evaluating several designs for temporary shelters for everyday use and deployment to temporary operating locations. If the B-21 fully fits…