President Trump decided not to brief top congressional lawmakers on the US military raid against Islamic State terrorist Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi because Washington is a “leaking machine” and to keep American troops safe.

The president was asked who he informed about the operation as he announced the death of al-Baghdadi during a White House news conference on Sunday.

“We notified some,” Trump said. “Others are being notified now as I speak. We were going to notify them last night, but we decided not to do that because Washington leaks like I’ve never seen before. There’s nothing — there’s no country in the world that leaks like we do, and Washington is a leaking machine.”

The president said a “very small group of people” were aware of the raid and he feared word would get out and “a leak could have caused the deaths of all of them.”

“And I told my people we will not notify them until our great people are out – not just in, but out,” Trump explained. “I don’t want to have them greeted with firepower like you wouldn’t believe. So we were able to get in. It was top secret. It was kept. There were no leaks, no nothing. The only people that knew were the few people that I dealt with.”

Asked if he had notified House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has launched an impeachment probe against the president, Trump said, “I didn’t do that.”

Pelosi, in a statement, praised the “heroism, dedication and skill of our intelligence professionals and acknowledge the work of our partners in the region.”

The California Democrat also called on the Trump administration to keep Congress in the know.

“The House must be briefed on this raid, which the Russians but not top Congressional Leadership were notified of in advance, and on the Administration’s overall strategy in the region,” the statement said. “Our military and allies deserve strong, smart and strategic leadership from Washington.”

Rep. Adam Schiff, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, which is at the forefront of the inquiry, said it was a “mistake” not to notify congressional leaders of a military operation.

“Had this escalated, had something gone wrong, had we gotten into a firefight with the Russians, it’s to the administration’s advantage to be able to say, ‘We informed Congress we were going in, they were aware of the risks. We at least gave them the chance to provide feedback.’ That wasn’t done here. I think that’s a mistake,” he told ABC News’ “This Week.”