He served as Vice Chairman of the Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council until the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States and was regarded as the closest advisor and deputy under President Saddam Hussein.

[2][3] Al-Douri was the most high-profile Ba'athist official to successfully evade capture after the invasion of Iraq, and was the "king of clubs" in the infamous U.S. deck of most-wanted Iraqi playing cards.

Al-Douri continued to lead elements of the Iraqi resistance such as the Naqshbandi Army against the then-occupation forces and waged an insurgency against the current regime in Baghdad.

[4] In April 2015, the Shiite militant organization Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq claimed they had killed al-Douri and his nine bodyguards during a military operation near the Al-Alaas oil fields in Hemreen east of Tikrit.

Nicknamed "the Iceman" for his humble origins selling blocks of ice, he became involved in revolutionary politics in his late teenage years, despite having had only a primary school education.

"[22] In 1993, al-Douri was involved in the state-sponsored Return to Faith Campaign (al-Hamlah al-Imaniyyah), which sought to encourage devotion to Islam in Iraqi social life.

[32] Al-Douri's influence with Saddam was so substantial that he could even levy a condition, that the union would not be consummated, and later made a successful petition that his daughter be permitted to divorce Uday.

[37] Al-Douri was made the King of Clubs in the famous most-wanted Iraqi playing cards, making him among the top 8 "most wanted" figures in Saddam Hussein's regime.

[38] At the time of the invasion of Iraq, al-Douri, along with Saddam and Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan, were among the three surviving plotters who had brought the Ba'ath Party to power in a coup in 1968.

[39] In an interview in May 2008, al-Douri detailed his strategy, indicating that "any negotiations with the invaders without it represents a desertion and treason, and is refused by all national, Pan-Arab and Islamic factions of the resistance.

[25][44] Nance would also allege that al-Douri fled to Syria after the 2003 Invasion of Iraq, where he organised the National Command of the Islamic Resistance which co-ordinated major combat operations during the Iraqi insurgency.

[50] Iraqi tribal expert and senior fellow at the United States Institute of Peace, Amatzia Baram, claimed that al-Douri is likely in hiding somewhere between Mosul and the Turkish border.

[56] General David Petraeus who was at the time heading the United States Central Command, told reporters from Al Arabiya that al-Douri was still residing in Syria with "complete freedom".

[40] Some leaders such as former national security advisor Mowaffak al-Rubaie and former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki have accused the Assad government of harbouring and supporting Iraqi militants.

[25] On 10 November 2011, a man claiming to be Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri released an audio tape condemning a recent arrest campaign targeting suspected Ba'ath Party members.

In the shots, he is seen wearing an olive Saddam-era military uniform (with the rank of Field Marshal) and glasses, denouncing the Shiite-led government in Baghdad and interference in Iraqi politics by regional Shia powerhouse Iran.

Prime Minister Maliki's personal adviser, Ali al-Moussawi, said the tape had a propaganda function but that he doubted al-Douri was still in Iraq as he required extensive medical care for a number of illnesses.

[72] On 5 January 2013, a 53-minute video was released on YouTube in which al-Douri encouraged recent Sunni protests in Nineveh and Anbar Governorates against Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, saying that "the people of Iraq and all its nationalist and Islamic forces support you until the realization of your just demands for the fall of the Safavid-Persian alliance."

The message, which showed the Ba'athist leader sitting behind a desk with a small Saddam-era Iraqi flag on it, was partially broadcast on the Al Arabiya news channel.

[25] Hours after the tape was released, Iraqi military intelligence arrested Abdul Rahman Mohammed Ibrahim, the nephew of al-Douri, in Saladin Governorate.

[77] On 13 June, a Twitter account, @wikibaghdadi, claimed a "Meeting between ISIS and Naqshbandi Army near al-Qayara area south of Mosul had taken place with representatives from Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri and Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

"[78] In July 2014, al-Douri issued an audio recording praising "the heroes and knights of al Qaeda and the Islamic State" forces in attacking Iraqi government positions within Saladin, Kirkuk, Diyala, and Nineveh Governorates.

[81] The Naqshbandi Army, along with other groups led by former Ba'ath officers, are reported to have assumed an increasingly large role in the governance and administration of occupied cities.

[82] Shortly afterwards, unverified reports emerged that the Ba'ath Party, under al-Douri's leadership, declared war on ISIL in response to the displacement of Christians from Mosul.

[21][86] In October 2015, it was reported that al-Douri's Naqshbandi Army was involved in secret discussions with the Iraqi government, alongside other insurgent groups, as part of a move to create a new Sunni force to fight IS in Iraq.

[88][89][90][91] On 7 April 2018, al-Douri released a new video commemorating the 71st anniversary of the Baath party and vowing that U.S. President Donald Trump "will never attack Iran until the Resurrection Day.

[94] On 17 April 2015, al-Douri allegedly died during a military operation conducted by the Iraqi Army near Al-Alaas oil fields in Hamrin Mountains, east of Tikrit.