Periodical Studies

This week, there was a decline in the scope of ISIS activity around the world. The organization’s activity was concentrated in Syria and Africa. ISIS announced the death of its leader (caliph) and the appointment of a new leader, Abu Hafs al-Hashemi al-Qurashi. Operatives of several provinces have already pledged allegiance to the new leader. In Syria: At least ten fighters of the Syrian army and the forces supporting it were wounded in an attack carried out by ISIS east of Al-Raqqah. In another incident, two officers and four soldiers were killed in attacks carried out by operatives of the Al-Qaeda-affiliated HTS against Syrian army positions in the western area of the rebel enclave in Idlib. A Malian army convoy was attacked in the border area between Mali and Niger. ISIS claimed responsibility for the attacks, noting that 13 soldiers were killed and three others were abducted. Read more...

This week, ISIS operatives carried out three noteworthy attacks: two attacks were carried out at the Al-Sayyida Zaynab Shrine, south of Damascus, a Shiite pilgrimage site. Another attack was carried out in Pakistan during a political gathering ahead of the elections. In Iraq Security forces continued their counterterrorism activities against ISIS’s infrastructure in the various provinces. One of ISIS’s senior commanders, described as “dangerous,” was detained. In Nigeria ISIS’s activity against the military forces continued, although this week it was relatively moderate. The Somali army reported that it had acted, in collaboration with the US army, against the Al-Shabaab infrastructure. According to Al-Shabaab, there was no military activity against it, and it was rather Al-Shabaab that acted against the Somali military forces. An ISIS suicide bomber carried out an attack during a political conference in Bajaur Province, east of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border. At least 54 people were killed and about 200 were wounded. Read more...