Reported death of IS chief blow to terrorism

The reported demise of Islamic State's elusive leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi provides impetus for the international community to jointly root out terrorist forces in the Middle East.

Baghdadi killed himself by detonating a suicide vest as a US special operations raid into northwest Syria aimed to capture him, United States Defense Secretary Mark Esper said on Sunday. Russia has expressed doubts that Baghdadi was killed.

China has always advocated the international community to jointly crack down on terrorism by addressing both its symptoms and roots, Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said on Monday.