![](https://www.longwarjournal.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Abu-Bakr-al-Baghdadi-1.png)
Islamic State destroys mosque where Baghdadi delivered first speech as ‘caliph’
The Islamic State demolished the Great Mosque of Al-Nuri earlier today. Abu Bakr al Baghdadi delivered his first speech as “Caliph Ibrahim” at the mosque in July 2014. Just days earlier, the Islamic State declared itself a so-called caliphate, ruling over large parts of Iraq and Syria.