IS jihadist danger still lurks after Baghdadi death: analysts

The death of Islamic State group leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi is a new blow to the extremist group that once controlled swathes of Iraq and Syria but in no way marks an end to the threat posed by the jihadists.

Analysts said that IS and the extremist jihadist movement have over the last one-and-a-half decades repeatedly shown resilience after the death of key leaders while battle-hardened militants remain in place.

The group may have been ready for the death of Baghdadi and after an initial period of few readjustment could even use it has a rallying case for launching new attacks, they added.

The death of Baghdadi in a raid by US special forces in northwestern Syria was announced by President Donald Trump, who said the jihadist chief died by setting off a suicide vest.

Jean-Pierre Filiu, a professor in Middle East studies at Sciences-Po in Paris, said that the death represented a huge setback for IS, which at the height of its success in 2014 proclaimed a new "caliphate" across parts of Iraq and Syria.

"But it is not certain that such a symbolic loss will fundamentally affect the operational direction of Daesh (IS), which has long been in the hands of seasoned professionals," he told AFP.

"In this respect, his demise could in the long run have even less impact than the killing of Osama bin Laden did on Al-Qaeda."