Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the leader of Daesh remains at large, months after his “caliphate” collapsed in 2017.
But the most wanted man has been traced to a specific place at least three times in the past 18 months, according to British daily The Guardian.
Intelligence agencies in Iraq and Europe believe for most of the past year and a half, Baghdadi has been based in a village south of Baaj — traveling within a small range between Abu Kamal, on the Iraq-Syria border, and Shirkat, south of Mosul.
Late last year, he was traced to a village south of Baaj, through the brief use of a communications device.
The connection was picked up by a signals intelligence network that has penetrated web and phone use in Daesh-held areas. However, it was too brief to pin point his exact location.
However the threat of his return remains. Signs of Daesh regrouping could mean the return of the group’s leader.
A US military assessment suggests he is probably hiding in the Euphrates river valley, along the border with Syria.
Meanwhile regional officials say he has returned to land between the Tharthar basin and the desert, closer to where the troubles began.