ISIS commander al-Shishani reported to be ‘clinically dead’

ISIL Minister of War (Defense Minister), Omar al-Shishani (nom de guerre) a top ISIL commander is thought to have been "clinically dead" for several days, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. He was brought to the hospital in Raqqa, from Shaddadi where he was either killed or gravely injured. He is reported to not be able to breathe on his own and is being kept alive via a respirator "machines".

He was a key figure in ISIL gaining legitimacy in it's early stages. At a time when he was considered to be moderate in his views, he was trained by the U.S. as a member of the Georgian military. It is believed he became radicalized following the Chechnyian wars after attending a mosque "donated by KSA that "preached a kind of alien Wahhabi- style Islam". It is said that the teachings that came from this mosque caused division in the community by radicalizing the young members of the community. "American and Georgian intelligence estimates put that number at between 150 and 200 young men who have left the town to fight in Syria." His father and other family members still live in this community.