Trump says US forces cornered IS leader in dead-end tunnel
WASHINGTON — Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the shadowy leader of the Islamic State group who presided over its global jihad and became arguably the world’s most wanted man, died after U.S. special operators cornered him during a raid in Syria, President Donald Trump said Sunday.
“Last night, the United States brought the world’s No. 1 terrorist leader to justice,” Trump announced at the White House, providing graphic details of al-Baghdadi’s final moments at the helm of the militant organization. “Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is dead.”
In a national address, Trump described the nighttime airborne raid in Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, with American special operations forces flying over heavily militarized territory controlled by multiple nations and forces. No U.S. troops were killed in the operation, Trump said.
The death of al-Baghdadi was a milestone in the fight against IS, which brutalized swaths of Syria and Iraq and sought to direct a global campaign from a self-declared “caliphate.” A yearslong campaign by American and allied forces led to the recapture of the group’s territorial holding, but its violent ideology has continued to inspire attacks.
As U.S. troops bore down on al-Baghdadi, he fled into a “dead-end” tunnel with three of his children, Trump said, and detonated a suicide vest, killing himself and the children. “He was a sick and depraved man, and now he’s gone,” Trump said. “He died like a dog, he died like a coward.”
The tip, the raid, the reveal: The takedown of al-Baghdadi
WASHINGTON — The helicopters flew low and fast into the night, ferrying U.S. special forces to a compound where Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was hiding in Syria. Half a world away, President Donald Trump watched the raid in real time via a video link as troops blasted into the hideout and sent the most-wanted militant running the last steps of his life.
The daring raid was the culmination of years of steady intelligence-gathering work — and 48 hours of hurry-up planning once Washington got word that al-Baghdadi would be at a compound in northwestern Syria.
The night unfolded with methodical precision and unexpected turns. This reconstruction is based on the first-blush accounts of Trump and other administration officials eager to share the details of how the U.S. snared its top target, as well observations from startled villagers who had no idea al-Baghdadi was in their midst.
California Rep. Katie Hill resigns amid ethics probe
WASHINGTON — Freshman Rep. Katie Hill, a rising Democratic star in the House, announced her resignation Sunday amid an ethics probe, saying explicit private photos of her with a campaign staffer had been “weaponized” by her husband and political operatives.
The California Democrat, 32, had been hand-picked for a coveted leadership seat. But in recent days, compromising photos of Hill and purported text messages from her to a campaign staffer surfaced online in a right-wing publication and a British tabloid.
The House ethics committee also had launched an investigation into whether Hill had an inappropriate relationship with an aide in her congressional office, which is prohibited under House rules. Hill, one of the few openly bisexual women in Congress, has denied that and vowed to fight a “smear” campaign waged by a husband she called abusive.
But on Sunday, she announced she was stepping aside.
“It is with a broken heart that today I announce my resignation from Congress,” she wrote in a statement released Sunday, adding that her resignation is effective Friday.
Ferocious winds fuel blazes throughout Northern California
SANTA ROSA, California — With ferocious winds driving multiple wildfires through bone-dry vegetation and nearly 200,000 people ordered to leave their homes, California’s governor declared a statewide emergency Sunday. Meanwhile, millions of residents remained without power after the state’s largest utility cut electricity as a precaution to prevent more areas from igniting.
Gov. Gavin Newsom said in a statement that officials were deploying “every resource available” to respond to the wildfires, including a large blaze in Northern California’s wine country powered by gusts that reached more than 102 mph (164 kph). He said Sunday that the fire had grown to burn over 78 square miles and containment dropped from 10%.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, two grass fires briefly halted traffic on an Interstate bridge. The flames came dangerously close to homes in Vallejo. Another grass fire closed a stretch of interstate that cut through the state capital as smoke obstructed drivers.
In the south, a wildfire in the Santa Clarita area near Los Angeles destroyed 18 structures. As of Sunday, the Tick Fire was 65% contained.
The biggest evacuation was in Northern California’s Sonoma County where 180,000 people were told to pack up and leave, many in the middle of the night.
Argentine incumbent concedes defeat in presidential vote
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Conservative President Mauricio Macri conceded defeat in Argentina’s election Sunday night, paving the way for the country’s Peronist center-left to return to power under Alberto Fernández as frustrated voters rejected the incumbent’s handling of a bruising economic crisis that has sunk many into poverty.
The result would mark a dramatic return to high office of former President Cristina Fernández, Alberto Fernández’s vice presidential running mate, former boss and what critics say might be the power behind his throne.
Macri told supports at his headquarters that he had called Alberto Fernández to congratulate him and invited him for a breakfast chat Monday at the Pink Presidential Palace.
“We need an orderly transition that will bring tranquility to all Argentines, because the most important thing is the well-being of all Argentines,” Macri said.
Authorities said Fernández has 47.83% of the votes compared to 40.66% for Macri, with 91.21% percent of the votes counted. He needs 45% support, or 40% support with a 10 percentage point lead, over the nearest rival to avoid a runoff vote on Nov. 24.
Macri was elected president in 2015 promising to jumpstart the country’s economy. Argentines rejected at the time a successor chosen by ex-president Fernández, who along with her late husband dominated Argentina’s political scene for 12 years and rewrote its social contract. But the divisive former leader, who embodies Argentina’s enduring cycle of hope and despair, appears back.
“I’m so happy. We were waiting for this change for a long time. We’re tired of everything that has been happening,” said supporter Juan Jose De Antonio, 46.
“Some of us live a different reality from those suffering hunger, but when you have a friend who lost a job, a neighbor who can’t make ends meet, it hits you.”
From wire sources
