ABU BAKR AL-BAGHDADI

Syrian opposition activists and state media apparently did not know that an Iraqi militant who was killed in October in southern Syria was the leader of the Islamic State group.

The spokesman for the Islamic State group says its leader Abu al-Hassan al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi was killed in battle recently.

Former President Donald Trump has had a lifelong habit of collecting things.

A British man nicknamed one of the Beatles by his captives because of his English accent has been sentenced to life in prison for his role in the deaths of four U.S. hostages captured by the Islamic State.

A jury has convicted a British national for his role in an Islamic State group hostage-taking scheme that took roughly two dozen Westerners captive a decade ago.

Jurors at the terrorism trial of British national El Shafee Elsheikh are hearing emotional testimony as the trial stretches into its second week in a Virginia courtroom.

A hostage who survived more than a year as a captive of the Islamic State is testifying about the beatings and torture inflicted on him by his captors.

The leader of the Islamic State group killed in a U.S. raid overnight in northwest Syria was largely a mystery, with almost no known photos, never appearing in public or in the group’s videos.

A British national has admitted in federal court that he played a leadership role in an Islamic State scheme to torture, hold for ransom and eventually behead American hostages.

One of two British nationals charged with joining with the Islamic State group and conspiring to torture and behead American and European hostages in Syria is scheduled to plead guilty to criminal charges.

French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting Iraq’s northern city of Mosul, which suffered widespread destruction during the war to defeat the Islamic State group in 2017.

Following a Mass on Sunday in the Iraqi city of Irbil, Francis met with Abdullah Kurdi and spent a long time with him, the Vatican said. Through an interpreter, the pope listened to Kurdi’s story and expressed sympathy for the loss of his family. Francis issued the appeal during a joyful visit to the Christian community of Qaraqosh, on the Nineveh Plains of northern Iraq. Chaldean Catholic Patriarch, Cardinal Louis Raphael Sako said Francis’ visit to Iraq was “miraculous” and had already borne fruits. AdChristian and Muslim leaders in Mosul have welcomed Pope Francis' visit to the Iraqi city devastated by war and are calling on Christians who fled the Islamic State group's onslaught to return.

President Donald Trump reacts to audience members during a campaign rally at Drake University, Thursday, Jan. 30, 2020, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)If you need help with the Public File, call 407-291-6000.

“We’re really looking to giving a very, very positive message,” Trump told reporters Sunday during a Super Bowl watch party. “This has been a very partisan process and this is an opportunity for him to unify the country around opportunities for all Americans," added White House spokeswoman Jessica Ditto. But it's one the White House believes will reach a broader audience and have a more potent impact given the venue, especially among independent voters. Yet Trump made no direct reference to the shutdown in the speech he eventually delivered to a newly divided Congress. In past years, the White House has tried to connect with audiences at home by highlighting the stories of guests invited to the speech.