The leader of the Islamic State terror group is apparently speaking out after nearly a year of silence, urging his supporters to persevere.
The terror group's al-Furqan media division issued a 54-minute speech Tuesday, purportedly from Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, titled "Give Glad Tidings to the Patient," according to the SITE Intelligence Group.
"For the Mujahideen, the scale of victory or defeat is not dependent on a city or town being stolen or subject to that who has aerial superiority, intercontinental missiles or smart bombs," the voice on the message tells IS supporters.
U.S. intelligence officials are aware of the new audio recording but have yet to verify that the voice on the tape is al-Baghdadi.
There are persistent questions about whether al-Baghdadi is still alive and still in charge, and where he might be hiding.
"We continue to assess that he's probably alive until he's proven to be dead," Chris Maier, the Pentagon's director for the Defeat ISIS Core Task Force, told VOA as recently as May, adding officials suspected al-Baghdadi likely was hiding in Syria.
But since then, U.S. and coalition officials have said IS has been cornered into a small pocket of territory along the border with Iraq, near the town of Hanjin.
Other reports, from the Defense Department and the United Nations, also have suggested that despite having lost 98 percent of the land it once controlled, IS may have as many fighters in Syria as it did at its peak.
The last time IS supporters heard from al-Baghdadi was September of last year when he called on followers to "fan the flames of war on your enemies, take it to them and besiege them in every corner."
He added an imperative: "Continue your jihad and your blessed operations and do not let the crusaders rest in their homes and enjoy life and stability while your brethren are being shelled and killed."
Information from Reuters was used in this report.
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