The leader of Isis, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, has appeared on video for the first time in nearly five years.

The group’s media arm released a speech by the elusive leader on Monday, in which he addresses the territorial defeat of Isis in Syria and praises recent terror attacks around the world. It is the first time he has been pictured since July 2014, when he announced the creation of the Isis caliphate from the al-Nuri mosque in Mosul.

Although Isis has released several audio recordings from Baghdadi over the past few years, his fate has been the subject of intense speculation. Following the capture of the last of the group’s territory, western intelligence agencies have speculated that he had gone into hiding somewhere in the desert regions of Iraq or Syria.

The jihadist leader, became emir of the Islamic State of Iraq group in 2010, took it from underground insurgency to a proto-state that ruled over around 10 million people. Since the last time he appeared in public, the once mighty caliphate has all but crumbled, and thousands of his fighters have been killed or languish in jail cells.

Timeline of the Isis caliphate Show all 19 1 /19 Timeline of the Isis caliphate Timeline of the Isis caliphate ISIS began as a group by the merging of extremist organisations ISI and al-Nusra in 2013. Following clashes, Syrian rebels captured the ISIS headquarters in Aleppo in January 2014 (pictured) AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi declared the creation of a caliphate in Mosul on 27 June 2014 Timeline of the Isis caliphate Isis conquered the Kurdish towns of Sinjar and Zumar in August 2014, forcing thousands of civilians to flee their homes. Pictured are a group of Yazidi Kurds who have fled Rex Timeline of the Isis caliphate On September 2 2014 Isis released a video depicting the beheading of US journalist Steven Sotloff. On September 13 they released another video showing the execution of British aid worker David Haines Timeline of the Isis caliphate The US launched its first airstrikes against Isis in Syria on 23 September 2014. Here Lt Gen William C Mayville Jnr speaks about the bombing campaign in the wake of the first strikes Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Isis militants sit atop a hill planted with their flag in the Syrian town of Kobani on 6 October 2014. They had been advancing on Kobani since mid-September and by now was in control of the city’s entrance and exit points AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Residents of the border village of Alizar keep guard day and night as they wait in fear of mortar fire from Isis who have occupied the nearby city of Kobani Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Smoke rises following a US airstrike on Kobani, 28 October 2014 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate YPG fighters raise a flag as they reclaim Kobani on 26 January 2015 VOA Timeline of the Isis caliphate Isis seized the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra on 20 May 2015. This image show the city from above days after its capture by Isis Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Kurdish forces are stationed on a hill above the town of Sinjar as smoke rises following US airstrikes on 12 November 2015 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Kurdish forces enter Sinjar after seizing it from Isis control on 13 November 2015 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Iraqi government forces make the victory sign as they retake the city of Fallujah from ISIS on 26 June 2016 Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Iraqi forces battle with Isis for the city of Mosul on 30 June 2017 AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Members of the Iraqi federal police raise flags in Mosul on 8 July 2017. On the following day, Iraqi prime minister Haider Al Abadi declares victory over Isis in Mosul Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Members of Syrian Democratic Forces celebrate in Al-Naim square after taking back the city of Raqqa from Isis. US-backed Syrian forces declare victory over Isis in Raqqa on 20 October 2017 after a four-month long campaign Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Female fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces celebrate in Al-Naim Square after taking back the city of Raqqa from Isis. US-backed Syrian forces declare victory over Isis in Raqqa on 20 October 2017 after a four-month long campaign AFP/Getty Timeline of the Isis caliphate Trucks full of women and children arrive from the last Isis-held areas in Deir ez-Zor, Syria in January 2019 They were among the last civilians to be living in the ISIS caliphate, by this time reduced to just two small villages in Syria’s Deir ez-Zor Richard Hall/The Independent Timeline of the Isis caliphate Zikia Ibrahim, 28, with her two-year-old son and 8-month-old daughter, after fleeing the Isis caliphate, on Saturday 26 January 2019 Richard Hall/The Independent

In the 18-minute video, entitled “In the Hospitality of the Emir of the Believers”, Baghdadi sits cross-legged alongside three other Isis members whose faces are blurred, next to a Kalashnikov rifle and ammunition belt. He praises the recent terror attacks in Sri Lanka, which targeted churches and hotels and left more than 250 people dead, calling it “revenge” for Baghouz – the small Syrian village where Isis made its last stand.

“And as for our brothers in Sri Lanka, I was overjoyed when I heard about the suicide attack, which overthrew the cradles of the crusaders, and avenged them for our brethren in Baghouz,” he said.

During this section, however, Baghdadi was not in view.

Instead, what appeared to be a voice recording of the leader was used over video of the atrocities and the pledge of allegiance by the attackers, giving rise to speculation that these comments may have been recorded at a separate time.

“It was by the grace of God that there were Americans and Europeans in Sri Lanka,” he said. “They questioned God, who answered in the form of bringing the suicide attackers.”

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi appears in a new video released by Isis on 29 April 2019

“Honestly, the battle of Islam and its people against the cross and its people is a long battle,” he said.

“The battle of Baghouz is over. But it did show the savagery, brutality and ill intentions of the Christians towards the Muslim community.”

He added that Isis would seek revenge for the killing and imprisonment of its militants, and that his group was in a “battle of attrition”.

Baghdadi has been rumoured to have been killed a number of times. In 2017, Russia said it was investigating whether one of its airstrikes on the city of Raqqa killed him and 300 other fighters. Other reports suggested he had been incapacitated by a US-led coalition strike.

Baghdadi announces the creation of the Isis caliphate at the al-Nuri mosque in Mosul, July 2014

The Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed coalition of Kurdish and Arab fighters, declared victory against the Isis caliphate on 23 March, when they captured the group’s last piece of territory. The final advance, backed by the US, was slowed by the presence of thousands of civilians. The last few months saw an exodus from the Baghouz area. Trapped in an ever-shrinking patch of land, they were without food and under constant bombardment. Some 60,000 people filed out of the dwindling enclave, nearly half of whom were surrendering supporters of Isis, including some 5,000 fighters. Many were foreigners from Iraq, Kazakhstan, Russia and even France.