Photos: German rapper who fought for ISIS terror group killed in an airstrike
The former German rapper who joined ISIS in 2012 and had
publicly threatened President Obama has been killed in an airstrike, the
Pentagon confirmed on Friday, October 30.
Denis Cuspert, who went by his hip-hop name "Deso
Dogg," died in an Oct. 16 attack near Raqqa, Syria, according to
Department of Defense spokeswoman Elissa Smith.
"Cuspert was a
foreign terrorist fighter and operative for ISIL who used social media to take
advantage of disaffected youth and potential Western recruits," she said
in a statement.
"He
publicly threatened the president of the United States and German citizens. He
also encouraged Western Muslims to conduct attacks." she added.
The Berlin-born rapper was labeled a "specially
designated global terrorist" in February, according to the State
Department.
Cuspert has appeared in several propaganda videos for the
militant group, including one where he appeared to be holding a man's severed
head. He went by the name Abu Talha al-Almani after ditching his musical roots
to join the terrorist group.
"His death contributes to our efforts to
stop foreign fighter recruitment," Smith said.