U.S. officials confirmed Monday that the remains of Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi were buried at sea.
Baghdadi died after detonating a suicide vest during a raid of his compound by U.S. forces, killing three of his children in the process.
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American soldiers on the ground collected Baghdadi’s remains to run DNA tests and confirm it was the terrorist leader, which took just 15 minutes. Baghdadi’s blood was compared to a DNA sample that had been obtained by Kurdish fighters last summer.
The officials told Reuters the remains were committed to the sea after confirming Baghdadi’s identification. He also received his final religious rights.
In 2011, U.S. forces disposed of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden’s remains in the same way. Burial at sea was chosen for bin Laden because it complied with Islamic custom and avoided the problems made possible by the grave site of an extremist leader.
