Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has only been seen in public once and has not been heard from in months, with some reports suggesting he had died. <br /><br /> But now an audio recording has emerged purporting to contain a message from the ISIL leader.<br /><br /> The unverified recording criticises the Saudi-led air strikes in Yemen and includes a call to arms for the militant group’s self-styled caliphate in parts of Iraq and Syria.<br /><br /> “Islam was never a religion of peace,” the voice announces. “Islam is the religion of fighting.”<br /><br /> It came on the back of an unconfirmed report that ISIL’s second-in-command, Abu Alaa al-Afari, had been killed in northern Iraq.<br /><br /> The recording was released as the UN Security Council met in New York to discuss the situation in Iraq. At the meeting, council members were told of a deepening humanitarian crisis in the country.<br /><br /> Valerie Amos, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, said:<br />“Next month will mark one year since the attack on Mosu
