Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, ISIL's elusive supremo, was believed to be killed in a special operations raid carried out by the U.S. military in Syria, U.S. media reported early Sunday.

Baghdadi may have killed himself with a suicide vest as U.S. special operations forces attacked, media said citing multiple government sources.

The emerging report came after the White House said U.S. President Donald Trump is about to deliver a "major statement" at 1300GMT on Sunday.

U.S. media reports citing military sources said the operation took place in Syria's northwestern Idlib province and was carried out by special operations forces after receiving actionable intelligence.

A war monitor said U.S. helicopters dropped forces in an area of Idlib province where "groups linked to the Islamic State group" were present. 

The helicopters targeted a home and a car outside the village of Barisha in Idlib province, said the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on sources inside Syria for its information. 

The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) has been working for five months as part of a joint operation to eliminate Baghdadi, its commander said on Sunday. 

"There has been intelligence work on the ground and precise tracking to eliminate the terrorist Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi through a joint operation," SDF General Commander Mazloum Abdi said in a tweet. "We thank everyone who contributed in this great work," he added tagging U.S. President Donald Trump. 

Baghdadi has been the subject of an international manhunt for years.

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Trump himself also tweeted Saturday night that "something very big has just happened!"

Neither his tweet nor the White House announcement gave any clues about the content of the upcoming statement.

Turkey on Sunday said there was "coordination" between Ankara and Washington before the operation. 

"Prior to the US Operation in Idlib province of Syria last night, information exchange and coordination between the military authorities of both countries took place," the Turkish defense ministry said in a tweet. 

It did not give further details. 

Baghdadi – an Iraqi native believed to be around 48 years old – was rarely seen. 

In 2014, ISIL overran large swathes of Syria and neighboring Iraq and Baghdadi appeared in a video that summer announcing a "caliphate" in regions they controlled. 

At the height of ISIL rule, Baghdadi's group implemented its brutal version of Islamic law on millions. 

But several offensives in both countries whittled down that land, backed by the air power of the coalition. 

In March, the SDF ousted the extremist group from its last patch of territory in the eastern Syrian village of Baghouz. 

Baghdadi, who has disappeared from sight for a long time, surfaced in a video in April with a wiry grey and red beard and an assault rifle at his side, as he encouraged followers to "take revenge" after the group's territorial defeat. 

His reappearance was seen as a reassertion of his leadership of a group that – despite its March defeat – has spread from the Middle East to Asia and Africa and claimed several deadly attacks in Europe. 

But Baghdadi remained on the run, and surviving ISIL sleeper cells continued to claim deadly attacks in parts of Syria and Iraq. 

The U.S. State Department had posted a 25 million U.S. dollars reward for information on his whereabouts. 

In September, the group released an audio message said to be from Baghdadi praising the operations of ISIL affiliates in other regions. 

It also called on scattered ISIL fighters to regroup and try to free thousands of their comrades held in jails and camps by the SDF in northeastern Syria. 

(With input from agencies)