US President, Donald Trump says the fugitive leader of the Islamic State (IS) group killed himself during a US military operation in north-west Syria.

While speaking from the White House, Trump said Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi detonated his suicide vest after fleeing into a tunnel, chased by US military dogs.

The BBC reports Baghdadi came to prominence in 2014 when he announced the creation of a "caliphate" in areas of Iraq and Syria.

BBC