The dog who helped U.S. forces track down and kill Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi has returned to duty after being injured by exposed live wires during the raid.
On Saturday, Baghdadi blew himself up after U.S. forces raided his compound in northern Syria.
President Trump revealed that the only injury sustained during the raid was to a military dog who assisted soldiers in the operation during a press conference on Sunday.
On Wednesday, Marine Corps Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, the commander of U.S. Central Command, announced that the dog had returned to active duty after sustaining injuries from exposed wires during the raid.
McKenzie also explained that the Belgian Malinois dog has extensive experience in assisting troops in important combat missions.
“This dog is a four-year veteran of the SOCOM [United States Special Operations Command] canine program and has been a member of approximately 50 combat missions,” McKenzie noted.
“Military working dogs are critical members of our forces,” he said. “These animals protect U.S. forces, save civilian lives, separate combatants from noncombatants, and immobilize individuals who express hostile intent.”
President Trump declassified and tweeted out a picture of the dog on Tuesday, commending the “great job” the dog did in the mission.
We have declassified a picture of the wonderful dog (name not declassified) that did such a GREAT JOB in capturing and killing the Leader of ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi! pic.twitter.com/PDMx9nZWvw
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 28, 2019
The dog’s name has yet to be declassified.
