The al-Qaida breakaway group that has seized much of northern Syria and huge tracks of neighboring Iraq formally declared the creation of an Islamic state today (June 29, 2014), the Associated Press website reports.
The spokesman for the Islamic States of Iraq and the Levant, Abu Mohammed al-Adnani, made the announcement in an audio statement posted online. Islamic extremists have long dreamed of recreating the Islamic state -- or caliphate -- that ruled over the Middle East for hundreds of years.
Abu Mohammed al-Adnani said the group's chief, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is the new leader -- or caliph -- of the Islamic State. He called on those living in the areas under the organization's control to swear allegiance to al-Baghdadi and support him.
Al-Adnani added that with the creation of the caliphate, the group was changing its name to just the Islamic State, dropping the mention of Iraq and the Levant.
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