The former German rapper who joined ISIS in 2012 and had publicly threatened President Obama has been killed in an airstrike, the Pentagon confirmed on Friday, October 30.
Denis Cuspert, who went by his hip-hop name “Deso Dogg,” died in an Oct. 16 attack near Raqqa, Syria, according to Department of Defense spokeswoman Elissa Smith.
“Cuspert was a foreign terrorist fighter and operative for ISIL who used social media to take advantage of disaffected youth and potential Western recruits,” she said in a statement.
“He publicly threatened the president of the United States and German citizens. He also encouraged Western Muslims to conduct attacks.” she added.
The Berlin-born rapper was labeled a “specially designated global terrorist” in February, according to the State Department.
Cuspert has appeared in several propaganda videos for the militant group, including one where he appeared to be holding a man’s severed head. He went by the name Abu Talha al-Almani after ditching his musical roots to join the terrorist group.
“His death contributes to our efforts to stop foreign fighter recruitment,” Smith said.
