This still from a video purports to show Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon at a mosque in Mosul on July 5.

Story highlights

Abu-Bakr Baghdadi was purportedly filmed giving a sermon at a mosque in northern Iraq last week

Observers claimed on social media that the Arab warlord was wearing an expensive Western watch

Others now claim he is wearing an "Islamic watch" that sets prayer reminders and has a Quran bookmark function

An employee at Al-Fajr, the Saudi-based watchmaker, tells CNN that al-Baghdadi's watch "appears to be one of ours"

CNN  — 

His black robes and turban may harken back to Arab rulers from 1,500 years ago, but Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s taste in wrist-wear is decidedly more 21st century.

Days after the mysterious leader of the Sunni terror group ISIS was purportedly filmed at a mosque in northern Iraq calling on believers to wage “jihad” against God’s enemies, social media is ablaze with speculation on the make of al-Baghdadi’s watch.

But while critics claimed that the flashy silver timepiece dangling from the Arab warlord’s wrist was a luxury Western watch worth thousands, his supporters say he was actually wearing a relatively more modest $560 “Islamic watch” from Al-Fajr, a Saudi Arabia-based watchmaker.

The deluxe stainless steel WA-10S watch – the preferred choice of “true Muslims,” according to some commentators on social media – can be programmed with the correct prayer times for hundreds of cities around the world.

The watch can be set to ring before each “azan,” or call to prayer, wherever the wearer happens to be, according to the Al-Fajr website. Muslims pray five times a day, and prayer times are based on the movement of the sun, so they can vary in different places within the same city.

In addition to the prayer alarms, the Swiss-made watch has a built-in compass to indicate the direction of Mecca, Islam’s holiest site, so believers will know what direction to pray.

The bilingual watch displays in English and Arabic and allows you to choose either the Gregorian or Hijra calendar, which is “based on the astronomical moon sighting at Mecca,” according to the watchmaker’s website.

The deluxe model also has a Quran bookmark feature which enables you to record the last Sura and Verse number so you can pick up where you left off later.

An employee at the watchmaker told CNN: “We can’t be sure 100% that the watch [al-Baghdadi] was wearing was actually ours, but after seeing the picture we can assume it is the Al-Fajr WA-10S Deluxe. Though the Arabic signs were not clear, the watch’s shape is identical to ours.”

“There is no record about who bought what from the more than 30 branches we run. While we don’t have branches in Iraq, we do have them in many other countries, among them 11 Arab countries and even European branches such as the one in the UK,” the employee added.

ISIS has not commented on the watch al-Baghdadi was wearing, but observers claimed earlier this week that one of the world’s most wanted men was wearing either a Rolex or a $5,000 Omega Seafarer – the timepiece of choice for James Bond, the world’s most famous silver screen spy.

Critics of al-Baghdadi – the ringleader of the al Qaeda splinter group whose lightning-quick advance has seen them seize large swathes of land in Syria and Iraq in recent months – say his flashy silver timepiece contradicted with his attempt to strike a pose of pious humility during his sermon at the mosque in Mosul.

“The ‘Khalifah’ Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi makes his first appearance wearing expensive Omega or Rolex watch,” said one observer on Twitter.

“New ‘Caliph’ spotted with serious bling, maybe he needs that Swiss precision to know it’s time for the Caliphate?” joked another.

Regardless of the brand, al-Baghdadi, like Osama bin Laden before him, wore the watch on his right arm in accordance with Salafist tradition dating back nearly 1,500 years to the Prophet Mohammed, who encouraged all Muslims to prioritize the right side of their bodies as they go about their daily lives.

Al-Baghdadi’s appearance in Mosul came days after ISIS declared him as the leader of a new state extending from Aleppo in northeastern Syria to the Diyala province in Iraq.

CNN could not independently verify the video’s authenticity, but the video did identify the man as Al-Khalifah Ibrahim, the name al-Baghdadi now goes by with his followers since ISIS declared the creation of their so-called caliphate, or “Islamic State.”

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CNN Wires contributed to this report.