MOSCOW — Russia’s military said Friday that it was looking into whether one of its airstrikes in the Syrian desert had killed Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-declared caliph of the Islamic State.

In a statement, the Defense Ministry said that the Russian air force struck a meeting of Islamic State leaders May 28 outside Raqqa, Syria, the group’s de facto capital, possibly killing Baghdadi.

The statement offered no explanation for the two-week delay in publicizing the airstrike. And it was also not clear whether the Russian military had known in advance that Baghdadi was at the gathering, or had learned of this possibility after the strike was carried out.

Rumors of Baghdadi’s death had circulated for months before the Russian announcement. But a Pentagon spokesman, Captain Jeff Davis of the Navy, said Friday: “We have no information to corroborate those reports.’’

NEW YORK TIMES