Dog praised by Trump for 'great job' in Baghdadi raid is 'back on duty'

General Mark Milley said the dog had performed a "tremendous service" during the special forces weekend assault in Syria that led to the death of the leader of the Islamic State group.

Announcing Baghdadi's death, President Donald Trump said Sunday that the "beautiful" and "talented" dog had pursued the IS leader into a dark tunnel where he blew himself up with a suicide vest, killing himself and three children and wounding the dog.

Trump tweeted a picture of the dog on Monday, saying it did a "GREAT JOB."

He said the name of the dog has not been declassified yet.

Milley also declined to provide the dog's name or any further details about the canine.

"We're not releasing the name of the dog right now," the general said.

He said the dog had been "slightly wounded and is fully recovering".

"The dog is still in theater, returned to duty, with its handler," he said.

US President Donald Trump officially announced the death of IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi on Sunday, saying the notorious militant "died like a dog".

Read more: Baghdadi may be dead, but the turmoil he thrived in lives on

Trump confirmed details published earlier, including reports Baghdadi killed himself and three of his children with a suicide vest as US special operations forces approached his position in Syria's Idlib region.

US forces killed a "large number" of IS militants during the raid which culminated in cornering Baghdadi in a tunnel, where he set off a suicide vest.

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