The Washington Post changed the headline of its obituary of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi on Sunday after facing backlash for calling him an “austere religious scholar.” Vice President of Communications at Washington Post Kristine Coratti Kelly said in a tweet that “the headline should never have read that way and we changed it quickly.” The first version of the article described Baghdadi as the “Islamic State’s terrorist-in-chief,” before it was changed to “austere religious scholar.” It’s unclear why the newspaper initially changed the headline, but it was changed for a third time to i

The Washington Post's headline calling ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi an "austere religious scholar" is "sick and repulsive," Fox News host Sean Hannity said Sunday, following the confirmation of his death at the hands of U.S. special forces.

Al-Baghdadi, who took over as the head of ISIS after his predecessor Abu Omar al-Baghdadi was killed in 2010, was said to have detonated a suicide vest as U.S. special forces closed in. Troops were sent to attack a compound in northern Syria where al-Baghdadi was located, according to a U.S. defense official.

The Washington Post is facing backlash after a headline characterized the Islamic State leader who was killed in a U.S. raid over the weekend as an "austere religious scholar." The headline was quickly changed, but critics say it sugar coated the terror inflicted by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

President Donald Trump announced Sunday morning that al-Baghdadi was killed when he detonated a vest he was wearing after being cornered by U.S. forces on Saturday evening.