DAESH has declared a new leader days after it confirmed the death of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in a US raid in Syria.
In its audio release by the Daesh central media arm, al-Furqan Foundation, a new spokesman for the group identified the successor as Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi – tracing his lineage, like al-Baghdadi, to the Prophet Mohammed's Quraysh tribe.
It provided no other details about al-Qurayshi and it was not immediately clear who the name was in reference to.
The group typically identifies its leaders using noms de guerre that refer to their tribal affiliation and lineage. Those names often change.
The speaker in the audio also confirmed the death of Abu Hassan al-Muhajir, a close aide of al-Baghdadi and a spokesman for the group since 2016.
Al-Muhajir was killed in a joint US operation with Kurdish forces in Jarablus in northern Syria on Sunday, hours after al-Baghdadi blew himself up during a US raid in Syria's north-western Idlib province.
The killings were a double blow to the extremist group, nearly seven months after its territorial defeat in Syria.
The new spokesman, named Abu Hamza al-Qurayshi, urged followers to pledge allegiance to the new "caliph" and addressed the Americans, saying: "Don't rejoice."
He said: "The Shura Council met immediately after confirming the martyrdom of Sheik Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The leaders of the Mujahedeen agreed after consultation with their brethren and acting according to the will (of al-Baghdadi) they pledged allegiance to Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi as the new leader of the Believers."
The new Daesh leader is identified as a scholar, a well-known warrior and "emir of war" who has battled American forces and knows "its wars".
"So don't rejoice America for the death of Sheik al-Baghdadi," the speaker said.
"Don't you know America that [Daesh] today is at the doorstep of Europe and is in Central Africa? It is also expanding and remaining from east to west."
The speaker was referencing the slogan the group used at the height of its successes: "Remaining and expanding."
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