- Denial comes after Lebanese officials said they have al-Baghdadi's wife
- They said the woman, Saja al-Dulaimi, was held for travelling with fake ID
- Officials said that she had herself claimed to be Isis leader's spouse
- Iraqi official identified her as sister of a different terror suspect
An
Iraqi official denied that a woman detained in Lebanon is a wife of Abu
Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State group, adding that she
is the sister of a terror suspect being held in Iraq.
Wednesday's denial comes a day after Lebanese authorities said they are holding a woman believed to be al-Baghdadi's wife.
They
said she was detained for travelling with a fake ID and had herself
claimed that she is the reclusive extremist leader's spouse.
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This file image made from video posted on a
militant website purports to show the leader of the Islamic State
group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, delivering a sermon at a mosque in Iraq
The
statement by Iraq's Interior Ministry spokesman Saad Maan Ibrahim adds
to the confusion surrounding the identity of the woman and child who
were detained about 10 days ago in northern Lebanon travelling with a
fake ID.
Lebanese
officials said the woman, Saja al-Dulaimi, is believed to be the wife
of the reclusive IS leader. She was held by Syrian authorities and freed
in a prisoner exchange with the Nusra Front, Syria's al-Qaida branch,
earlier this year.
The interrogation of the woman was being supervised by Lebanon's military prosecutor.
It
was unclear what would have brought the woman and child to Lebanon,
where IS controls no territory and enjoys only small support in some
predominantly Sunni Muslim areas.
On
Wednesday, Ibrahim told The Associated Press that al-Dulaimi, an Iraqi
national who traveled to Syria before arriving in Lebanon, is not
al-Baghdadi's wife. He identified her as the sister of Omar Abdul Hamid
al-Dulaimi, who is being held in Iraq as a terror suspect.
He
added that al-Baghdadi has two wives but neither is named Saja
al-Dulaimi. There was no immediate comment from Lebanese authorities.
In
Lebanon, a military expert was killed and two others wounded Wednesday
when a bomb they were about to dismantle near the border with Syria
exploded, the army said.
The explosion comes a day after an ambush by suspected Islamic militants in the same area killed six soldiers and wounded one.
In Lebanon, a military expert was killed
and two others wounded Wednesday when a bomb they were about to
dismantle near the border with Syria exploded. Lebanese soldiers are
pictured here patrolling the area
Lebanese troops (pictured) have been
battling Syria-based Islamic militants, including the extremist Islamic
State group and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, in areas near the
border
No one has so far claimed responsibility for Tuesday's ambush or for planting the bomb that was discovered Wednesday.
Lebanese
troops have been battling Syria-based Islamic militants, including the
extremist Islamic State group and the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, in
areas near the border.
Meanwhile,
Saudi Arabia's Interior Ministry spokesman said police have not ruled
out the possibility that Islamic State group supporters were behind the
shooting of a Danish man last month.
It
was the first time a Saudi official publicly comments on the incident
since a video was released by alleged IS supporters claiming
responsibility for the drive-by shooting in Riyadh Nov. 22. The Danish
citizen survived the shooting.
Interior Ministry spokesman Mansour al-Turki's comments were published Wednesday in the Saudi Al-Eqtisadia newspaper.
The
video was released online this week by a group purporting to be IS
supporters. It shows a gunman pulling up beside a vehicle and firing at
the driver. It identifies the target as Thomas Hoepner. It was not
immediately possible to confirm the authenticity of the video.
Lebanese army special forces in armored personnel carriers patrol near the area militants ambushed Lebanese soldiers
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