Even as US officials acknowledged that Idlib was home to the largest faction of al-Qaeda fighters since 9/11, supporters of regime change and the US government itself fiercely protected the province….With Baghdadi’s killing, they were forced to contend with the fact that they helped provide a sanctuary to the bloodthirsty ruler of ISIS…..But the proverbial elephant in the room continued to go unnoticed, or ignored: The US had been using diplomatic leverage and threats of military force to keep Baghdadi’s hosts in power.
