The Islamic State (ISIS) group has confirmed the death of its leader, Abu Hussein al-Husseini al-Qurashi, and named Abu Hafs al-Hashimi al-Qurashi as his replacement. The group said that its leader had been killed in direct clashes with the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham group in Idlib province in rebel-held northwestern Syria. The announcement was made by an ISIL spokesman in a recorded message on its channels on the Telegram messaging app, without specifying when he was killed. 

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan had said in April that Turkish intelligence forces had killed the leader in Syria. However, the ISIS spokesman claimed on Thursday that Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, which controls parts of Idlib province, had killed the group’s chief and handed his body to Turkey. It accuses HTS – which has not claimed any operation targeting the ISIL leader – of working in Ankara’s interests. The United States and other Western governments have blacklisted HTS as a “terrorist” group.