Abu Abdulrahman al-Bilawi

Adnan Ismail Najm al-Bilawi Al-Dulaimi, better known by the nom de guerre Abu Abdulrahman al-Bilawi, was a top commander in the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and the head of its Military Council, prior to his killing by Iraqi security forces on 5 June 2014.

al-Bilawi belongs to Al-bu Bali clan of the Dulaim the largest tribe in Anbar. his tribe formed the nucleus of the resistance\insurgency against U.S. forces in Iraq. the Dulaimis returned to the armed insurgency in 2014 After that the Iraqi army kidnapped Sunni MP Ahmed al-Alwani from Dulaim (Albo-alon clan).

al-Bilawi led the battles of Samarra and Mosul and he was killed during the campaign.

According to Ahmad Khalaf al-Dulaimi, the governor of Anbar Province, he taught him when they were both at the Iraqi Military Academy. al-Bilawi graduated in 1993 and went on to become an infantry officer in the Iraqi military, achieving the rank of Captain.

After the US-led 2003 invasion of Iraq, al-Bilawi joined al-Qaida in Iraq and worked closely with its then leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Najm was detained by American forces in 2005 in Camp Bucca. Najm was one of the approximately 500 prisoners who escaped from Abu Ghraib prison in July 2013, following a raid and mass jailbreak by members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.

Following his escape, he became a member of ISIL’s Military Council and had a major role in planning and leading the groups military offensive in Northern and Central Iraq. Najm was killed on 5 June 2014 by Iraqi Security Forces in Mosul. ISIL named the military operation that resulted in their seizure of Mosul on 9 June 2014 Bilawi Vengeance, a reference to his alias.

Following his death in an Iraqi military raid, a laptop belonging to al-Bilawi revealed high quality intelligence on the operations and leadership structure of ISIL. His death was acknowledged by ISIL's official spokesman, Abu Mohammad al-Adnani, in a June 2014 statement that praised his contributions to the group. He was reportedly succeeded by Adnan al-Sweidawi as leader of the ISIS Military Council.