Special Ops General: ISIS Leader Preparing for Own Demise
SOCOM commander confident in Syrian training program, despite "not great" number
ASPEN, Colorado — -- The leader of ISIS appears to be preparing for his own demise by looking for an heir to the terror throne, the chief of U.S. special operations said today.
"I think he's trying to be resilient. I think he's trying to develop some level of follow-on leadership so in the event something happens to him that somebody will know to carry on," Gen. Joseph Votel, Commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, said today at the Aspen Security Forum.
Votel declined to elaborate on Abu Bakr al-Bagdadi's condition or altered role in the organization. Past media reports suggested that al-Baghdadi had been wounded, but at the time U.S. military officials said they could not confirm those reports.
Multiple counter-terrorism officials have told ABC News that al-Baghdadi was not injured in an airstrike, as had been reported, and is believed to be alive and well. He is thought to frequently move between Iraq and Syria, according to the officials.
Earlier this week The New York Times reported that al-Baghdadi had "empowered" his deputies as well as regional commanders to ensure ISIS would go on fighting without him.
Votel also told the audience he remained "confident" in the U.S.-led program to train moderate Syrian groups to take on ISIS in their homeland, despite saying that the number of fighters involved is "not great."
Defense Secretary Ash Carter made a shocking admission earlier this month when he testified before Congress that the U.S. is only currently training 60 Syrian fighters. Last year, the Pentagon predicted it would train as many as 5,000 moderate Syrian rebels per year over three years.
Votel was undeterred by the slow progress of the program.
"We're very early on in the process. The numbers are not great. I've had some opportunity to go look at that. I feel very confident in the system we have in place. I feel very confident that as we continue to invest in this area and continue with time that this will be successful for us," he said.
ABC News' Justin Fishel contributed to this report.