THIS SUNDAY MORNING FROM

PRESIDENT TRUMP AT ANY MOMENT

FROM THE DIPLOMATIC ROOM IN THE

WHITE HOUSE.

THE PRESIDENT IS EXPECTED TO

ANNOUNCE A U.S.-LED SPECIAL

OPERATION MISSIONS KILLED ABU

BAKR AL BAGHDADI.

THE RAID HAPPENING IN NORTHERN

SYRIA ON SATURDAY.

SEVERAL OTHER PEOPLE WERE ALSO

KILLED.

PRESIDENT TRUMP TWEETING ON

SATURDAY NIGHT, QUOTE, SOMETHING

VERY BIG HAS JUST HAPPENED.

LET'S BEGIN WITH NBC CHIEF

FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT RITUALSHIP

RICHARD ENGLE IN NORTHERN SYRIA

WITH DETAILS OF THE RAID.

RICHMOND, GOOD MORNING.

HOW CONVINCED ARE WE THAT WE

HAVE AL BAGHDADI?

>> Reporter: WELL, U.S.

OFFICIALS ARE PRETTY CONVINCED.

THEY ARE NOT GIVING THE 100%

CONFIRMATION.

WE MIGHT HEAR THAT SOON FROM

PRESIDENT TRUMP BUT THEY ARE

VERY CONFIDENT THE OVERNIGHT

RAID WHICH BEGAN AROUND 11:00

LOCAL TIME DID, IN FACT, KILL

ABU BAKR AL BAGHDADI, THE LEADER

OF ISIS, THE WORLD'S MOST WANTED

TERRORIST.

IT HAPPENED ON A VILLAGE ON THE

BORDER OF SYRIA AND TURK AND WE

HAVE BEEN TO A HALF DOZEN TIMES.

A WELL-KNOWN SMUGGLING VILLAGE

SO IT'S BELIEVED THAT BAGHDADI

WAS TRYING TO LEAVE SYRIA AND

PERHAPS GO TO TURKEY AND STAY IN

THIS AREA THAT HAS AN OPEN-FLOW

OF PEOPLE.

NOW WITNESSES IN THE VILLAGE

TELL US THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED.

AROUND 11:00, FIRST, THEY HEARD

HELICOPTERS COME IN.

U.S. SPECIAL OPERATIONS FORCES.

THE HELICOPTERS CAME IN IN

FORCE.

THEY WERE CIRCLING AND OPENING

FIRE.

THIS WAS NOT A QUICK OPERATION.

IT WAS NOT AN IN AND OUT.

THEY WERE CIRCLING AND FIRING

FOR QUITE A BIT OF TIME.

THE WHOLE THING LASTING THREE TO

FOUR HOURS.

THEN AMERICAN TROOPS LANDING.

THEY DIDN'T JUST ATTACK ONE

TARGET.

THEY TARGETED MULTIPLE HOUSES

AND A CAR IN THE AREA.

THE MAIN FOCUS, HOWEVER, WHAT

THEY THINK WAS THE HIDEOUT OF

ABU BAKR AL BAGHDADI.

THEY WENT INSIDE.

THERE WAS GUNSHOTS.

THE WITNESS THAT WE SPOKE TO WAS

ABOUT 500 YARDS AWAY.

HE SAID HE COULD HEAR THE

HELICOPTERS OVER HIS HOME.

HE COULD FEEL THE WIND FROM THE

HELICOPTER BLADES PUSHING INTO

HIS HOUSE, RATTLING THE WINDOWS,

BUT HE SAID HE WASN'T ABLE TO GO

OUTSIDE.

WHAT HAPPENED IN THAT HOUSE,

IT'S QUITE UNCLEAR, BUT THIS

OPERATION CONTINUED TO UNFOLD.

THE U.S. SPECIAL OPERATION

FORCES, THE MOST ELITE AMERICAN

TROOPS IN THE WORLD WERE ON THE

GROUND EXPLOITING AS THEY CALL

IT THIS SITE, GATHERING

INFORMATION.

APPARENTLY KILLING ABU BAKR AL

BAGHDADI AND THEN LEAVING AND

BLOWING UP THE COMPOUND.

>> RICHARD ENGEL IN NORTHERN

SYRIA FOR US.

LET ME CHECK IN WITH HALLIE

JACKSON AT THE WHITE HOUSE.

WE SAW PRESIDENT TRUMP LAST

NIGHT SEEMED TO TEASE THIS OUT

OF WHAT HAPPENED.

>> Reporter: YES.

>> WHEN DO WE KNOW WHEN THIS

RAID WAS GREEN-LIT BY THE

PRESIDENT?

>> Reporter: IN THE EVENING AT

SOME POINT AS THIS WAS GOING

DOWN.

WE UNDERSTAND FROM SOURCES THAT

PRESIDENT TRUMP PERSONALLY

APPROVED THIS OPERATION.

I'M TOLD A LOT OF WHITE HOUSE

AIDS HUDDLED IN THE EVENING

TELLING ME THIS MORNING THAT

PRESIDENT TRUMP AND A SMALL

GROUP OF HIS ADVISERS WERE IN

THE SITUATION ROOM MONITORING

DEVELOPMENTS WITH THIS

OPERATION.

THE PRESIDENT, OF COURSE, VERY

INVOLVED IN THIS.

WHAT IS A CRITICAL MOMENT FOR

HIM MOVING FORWARD.

WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS, THE

PRESIDENT HAS REPEATEDLY TALKED

ABOUT WHAT HE DESCRIBES THE

DEFEAT OF ISIS AND SOMETHING

ALMOST A PART OF HIS CAMPAIGN

STUMP SPEECH, IF YOU WILL.

IT'S REFERENCED CONSTANTLY WHEN

THE PRESIDENT MAKES PUBLIC

REMARKS, BUT HE HAS TALKED MUCH

LESS, FAR FEWER TIMES ABOUT AL

BAGHDADI, HIMSELF.

THE PRESIDENT HAS MENTIONED THAT

BAGHDADI'S SHORT DETENTION IN

2004 RATHER CRITICALLY.

THIS IS WHEN HIS PEOPLE ARE

CRITICIZING HIM.

WATCH THE PRESIDENT, BASED ON MY

REPORTING AND WHAT I'VE HEARD TO

TALK ABOUT HOW THIS IS

ESSENTIALLY PROOF POSITIVE THAT

HIS POSITION IS WORKING.

I DON'T KNOW IF WE WANT TO CALL

IT A VICTORY LAP BECAUSE I'M NOT

SURE HOW DEFINITIVE THERE BE

DECLARED THAT BAGHDADI HAS BEEN

KILLED BUT I THINK THE PRESIDENT

WILL USE THIS TO CONVINCE THE

AMERICAN PEOPLE HIS POSITION IS

CORRECT ON SYRIA, WHAT HE WANTS

TO DO IS WORKING IN A CAMPAIGN

TO DEFEAT ISIS.

IT'S CERTAINLY A COMMANDER IN

CHIEF MOMENT FOR HIM AND UNUSUAL

TIME AS YOU KNOW FOR A PRESIDENT

TO BE MAKING THESE KIND OF

PUBLIC REMARKS ON A SUNDAY

MORNING BUT, CLEARLY, THE

PRESIDENT AFTER THIS OPERATION

WENT DOWN, WE UNDERSTAND LATE

YESTERDAY HE WANTED TO BE THE

FIRST PUBLIC PRESIDENT TO TALK

ABOUT THIS, CHUCK.

>> HALLIE JACKSON AT THE WHITE

HOUSE, THANK YOU.

LET ME GO TO OUR CORRESPONDENT.

COURTNEY, HE TOOK CREDIT BUT

HANDED OUT A LOT OF CREDIT

SAYING THIS IS A FIVE-MONTH

OPERATION, IF YOU WILL, TO TRACK

AND LOCATE AL BAGHDADI?

>> Reporter: YEAH, THERE IS A

COUPLE OF PEOPLE IN DIFFERENT

NATIONS TAKING CREDIT FOR THIS

RIGHT NOW.

WHAT WE KNOW FROM THE U.S.

MILITARY SIDE IS THAT THESE

ELITE SPECIAL OPERATORS WHO WERE

A PART OF THIS MISSION ARRIVED

IN THE COUNTRY A LITTLE OVER A

WEEK AGO HERE IN THE REGION AND

THEY STARTED PLANNING, REFINING

THEIR PLANS FOR THIS MISSION.