Haji Bakr

Samir Abd Muhammad al-Khlifawi (; 1958-1964 – January 2014), better known by the pseudonym Haji Bakr and sometimes his kunya Abu Bakr al-Iraqi , was a senior leader of the militant group Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), heading its Military Council and leading its operations in Syria, prior to his killing by Syrian rebels in January 2014. Previously a Colonel in the Iraqi Intelligence Service, papers found after his death indicated that al-Khlifawi played a key role in devising the plans ISIL used to conquer and administer territory in Syria and Iraq. According to Iraqi journalist Hisham al-Hashimi, whose cousin served with Khlifawi, he was stationed for a period of time at Habbaniya Air Base. Iraqi intelligence says that he joined al-Qaida in Iraq in 2004 and took part in the Iraqi insurgency.

Following his release he became a senior leader in the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), and led the group's military council following the killing of top commanders Abu Omar al-Baghdadi and Abu Ayyub al-Masri by US Forces in 2010. Al-Khlifawi played an influential role in Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi becoming the next ISI leader, and reportedly organized an internal purge, including scores of assassinations, in order to solidify al-Baghdadi's control of the group.

Role in Syria The then-ISI took advantage of the 2011 outbreak of Civil War in neighboring Syria to grow their organisation. Al-Khlifawi moved to an unremarkable house It was here where he organised the group's takeover of territory in parts of the country using his experience as a former Intelligence Officer. Documents written by al-Khlifawi, and discovered by Syrian rebels in his hideout, showed that the group was following a strategy to initially use intelligence gathering, infiltration of local power bases, and tactical short-term alliances with local power brokers to establish themselves in the area. This would expand to include kidnappings and assassinations of potential threats before the group would seize control of the territory and utilize the already established network of informers in the area to become the base of a governance system in the region.

Al-Khlifawi was killed in early January 2014 in Tell Rifaat during clashes between ISIL and Syrian rebels by members of the Syrian Martyrs' Brigade, who were not aware of his importance.