President Trump sent out a series of tweets on Saturday morning that weighed in on various hot topics following the resignation of press secretary Sean Spicer. In the tweets, Trump targeted some familiar names, including the "Amazon Washington Post," Hillary Clinton, leaker, Obamacare, and the Democrats. But in his tweetstorm, one vague tweet left many scratching their heads in confusion.
The tweets, issued by Trump, have him railing against a new Washington Post article based on an intelligence leak and claiming that "the Failing New York Times" foiled an attempt to kill Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of ISIS.
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
A new INTELLIGENCE LEAK from the Amazon Washington Post,this time against A.G. Jeff Sessions.These illegal leaks, like Comey's, must stop!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2017
The Failing New York Times foiled U.S. attempt to kill the single most wanted terrorist,Al-Baghdadi.Their sick agenda over National Security
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 22, 2017
CBS News points out that his tweet may have been inspired by a segment on Fox News' Fox & Friends was aired about leaks before the tweets, where the chyron at one point read "NYT Foils U.S. attempt to take out Al-Baghdadi."
The Fox News segment featured an anchor making references to comments previously made by General Raymond Thomas, the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM), at the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado. In a Friday appearance on Fox, Thomas said that in 2015 "there were some leaks about what we were up to," implying that a story that the New York Times published in June of 2016 disturbed plans to track and capture ISIS leader bu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
In the article, information regarding the Islamic State's internal affairs — including their leadership structure, financial operations, and security structures — were seized in a raid by the Delta Force commando. This information helped to carry out an airstrike against another Islamic State leader, though the suggestions of leaks come from the question of "how effectively even this trove of materials can be exploited, given the nature of the Islamic State’s secrecy and ability to adapt," as raised by American counterterrorism officials.
In his appearance on Fox, Thomas went on to report a raid on the compound at that time that resulted in the killing of ISIS oil minister Abu Sayyaf and the capture of his wife.