The No. 2 figure in ISIS, Haji Mutazz, is believed to have been killed in an August 18 drone strike near Mosul, Iraq, several U.S. officials told CNN.
The U.S. intelligence community is in the final stages of confirming the man who died was Mutazz, a top deputy to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Bagdadi, the officials said.
The U.S. believes Mutazz was prominently involved in directing ISIS’ financial operations.
The death of Mutazz, who also goes by several other names, is a bit of a mystery. Several news organizations, including CNN, reported his death at the end of last year, based on information from senior U.S. administration officials.
One official said it appears the U.S. had a wrong identification at that time.
