Violence and Security

IS Continues to Profit from Looting of Christian Sites

April 26, 2019

Islamic State (IS) fighters targeted Christian cultural and religious sites in Iraq and Syria for destruction, rapine, and looting, permitting IS networks to profiteer from the illicit sale of Christian artifacts on global black markets well after the military defeat of the caliphate in its core territories.
Sri Lanka Attacks Show IS Recruiting Strategy Remains Effective

April 25, 2019

The Islamist bombing attacks in Sri Lanka have revealed the parameters of the Islamic State’s (IS) ongoing, effective recruitment and impact strategy for global jihad.
Diverse Ecosystem of Islamist Groups Poses Massive Threat

April 25, 2019

The diverse ecosystem of violent Islamist groups operating worldwide underscores the serious challenges in facing the international security threat these groups pose and the need for cooperation between states and international organizations in responding to this threat.
IS Involvement in Sri Lanka Attacks Highlights Ongoing Threat

April 25, 2019

The involvement of the Islamic State (IS) in the mass-casualty terrorist attack in Sri Lanka highlights the durability of the caliphate's impact as an emerging and future threat to global order.
IS Claims Responsibility for Sri Lankan Terror Assaults

April 25, 2019

The Islamic State's (IS) official news agency, Amaq, has claimed responsibility for the mass-casualty assault on Roman Catholic Churches and luxury hotels in Sri Lanka, calling the attacks retribution for last month's attacks by a white supremacist on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.
Sri Lanka Attacks Underscore Need for Integrated Prevention Efforts

April 24, 2019

Reports that political feuding among Sri Lanka's government leaders caused the failure to prevent the mass-casualty Easter attacks on churches in the country underscores the need for integrated state planning and information sharing in efforts to counter the global threat of Islamist extremism and violence.
NGO Chief Warns Against Laws Targeting Online Speech

April 23, 2019

Brett Solomon of the advocacy group Access Now writes that the Australian government must not rush through criminal legislation targeting social media platforms that fail to remove “terrorist” content after the mass murders at two New Zealand mosques in March, citing the potential chilling effect of such legislation on online speech.
IS Reorganization Puts Pressure on Syria's Civilians

April 23, 2019

Evidence shows Syria’s civilians, due to the resilience of the Islamic State (IS), are throwing their support behind the Assad regime as a means of escaping the perils of IS attacks.
Iran Prepares Designation of US Military as Terrorist Group

April 23, 2019

US military officials are warning of possible attacks against American troops engaged in the Middle East, based on preparations by the Iranian regime retaliating against the US government’s designation of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organization by labeling the US military a terrorist group.
IS Ramps up Recruitment in East Africa

April 23, 2019

The increased focus of the Islamic State (IS) and other Islamist extremist groups in East Africa continues to emerge, most recently, in the form of an IS propaganda video on IS operations in Mali released by the caliphate's official Amaq News Agency and designed for recruitment and radicalization.