President Donald Trump confirmed the death Tuesday of Islamic State’s ‘number one’ replacement for Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who was killed during a Special Forces operation targeting the terrorist leader on Saturday.

“Just confirmed that Abu Baker al-Baghdadi’s number one replacement has been terminated by American troops,” Trump Tweeted. “Most likely would have taken the top spot – Now he is also Dead!”

Just confirmed that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s number one replacement has been terminated by American troops. Most likely would have taken the top spot – Now he is also Dead! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 29, 2019

The death of Haji Imam, whose real name is said to be Abd ar-Rahman Mustafa al-Qaduli, is significant because it weakens ISIS ability to rebuild its leadership and continue operations, said military officials.

He was a senior religious leader of the self-proclaimed Islamic State and was killed when Special Forces who had been tracking him for days conducted a raid on his vehicle.

On Saturday, the U.S. Army’s most elite fighting force, DELTA team, targeted al-Baghdadi in northeast Syria. In an operation consisting of eight Chinook helicopters the special forces operators chased the terrorist convoy and along with trained military dogs cornered the ISIS leader.

We have declassified a picture of the wonderful dog (name not declassified) that did such a GREAT JOB in capturing and killing the Leader of ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi! pic.twitter.com/PDMx9nZWvw — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) October 28, 2019

Baghdadi killed himself with a suicide vest along with his three children before allowing the DELTA team to capture him. He has been in hiding and on the run for more than five years. The last public information regarding the terrorist leader came in an April video, which was released by the terrorist organizations media wing al-Furqan. The video apparently showed man suspected to be Baghdadi.

“He had eluded the U.S. military for years and if he’s been killed this is an enormous victory for the United States and our allies all over the world,” said a former senior U.S. military official. ISIS fighters and followers have been involved in nearly 200 attacks in more than 143 countries around the world and have taken the lives of thousands of people, according to reports.