How ISIS Will Go On Without Mosul
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Printable View
How ISIS Will Go On Without Mosul
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
ISIS Reduced to Less Than 5 Percent of Its Former Iraqi Capital
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
ISIS, Battered but Still Potent, Returns to Its Insurgent Roots
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Iraqi Premier Declares Victory Over ISIS In Mosul
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
ISIS Was a Symptom. State Collapse Is the Disease
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Dozens of U.S. Civilians are in Syria Fighting Alongside Local Forces Against ISIS
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
U.S.-Backed Forces Battle ISIS in Heart of Syria's Raqqa & Does the Taliban Have the SCAR?
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Beyond Syria and Iraq, Faraway ISIS ‘Provinces’ Fight On
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
A Battered ISIS Grows Ever More Dependent on ‘Lone Wolves’, Simple Plans
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
How ISIS Nearly Stumbled on the Ingredients for a 'Dirty Bomb'
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Behind the Front Lines in the Fight to ‘Annihilate’ ISIS in Afghanistan
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Al-Qaeda in the Age of ISIS
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Making Victory Count After Defeating ISIS
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
The Institute of Peace is Successful Against ISIS - The U.S. Must Fund It
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Embassy, Mosque Attacks Fuel Fears ISIS Bringing Iraq War to Afghanistan
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Under Trump, Gains Against ISIS Have ‘Dramatically Accelerated’
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
The Men Who Trade ISIS Loot
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
After Mosul, Airstrikes Against ISIS Ebb Slightly But Remain High
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Hash and High Explosives: The Great ISIS Bomb Hunt
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
ISIS After The Caliphate
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
In Syria, New Conflict Looms as ISIS Loses Ground
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Russia Says Syria Government Seized Most Territory From ISIS
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
ISIS Near Defeat in Iraq. Now Comes The Hard Part.
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
As ISIS Falters, Syrian Regime and US Allies Maneuver for Advantage
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
The Fires Next Time: The ISIS Terrorist Threat in the West
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
17 ISIS Fighters Reported Killed as US Ends Lull in Libya Airstrikes
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Captured ISIS Fighters’ Refrain: ‘I Was Only a Cook’
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Abadi Wins ISIS War, Maliki Wins Elections: Time for US to Shift Policy on Kurdistan
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
A Lasting Defeat: The Campaign to Destroy ISIS
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
With Loss of Its Caliphate, ISIS May Return to Guerrilla Roots
Entry Excerpt:
--------
Read the full post and make any comments at the SWJ Blog.
This forum is a feed only and is closed to user comments.
Jason Burke, a respected journalist, has a lengthy commentary; which is sub-titled: Islamic State’s last stronghold, Raqqa, has fallen. But the world’s attention must now focus on what it or other Islamist groups will plot next.
Link:https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...iraq-islamist?
A couple of quotes:Quote:
Raqqa may have fallen, but if Isis is down, it is far from out.....It is clear that any victory over Isis is partial. The recent military offensive has not been accompanied by a parallel political effort.(He ends with) So let us celebrate the defeat of Islamic State and its hateful so-called caliphate – and keep a wary eye out for the next fight.
An interesting 'Slate' article; which ends with:Link:http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2017/11/terrorist_acts_like_the_new_york_vehicle_attack_ar e_losing_their_ability.html?Quote:
Some officials in Western governments say they believe terrorism is just part of the modern world, and policies should be oriented toward building resilience against it. ISIS may have helped accomplish this goal by making terrorism seem a part of everyday life, making it fail to achieve its intended objective—to terrify.
Professor Paul Rogers has a short commentary that opens with:Link:https://www.opendemocracy.net/paul-r...lus-expertise?Quote:
In the ashes of the caliphate lie the seeds of a new and even more dangerous ISIS.
(Concludes) But it does indicate the sheer amount of knowledge and expertise that ISIS and related groups accrued in this latest phase of conflict. Far from disappearing, these will be put to use in perhaps unexpected ways. It is another reason why the "war on terror", even as it takes different forms, is likely to continue.
Within Paul Roger's article are two links to short reports on how ISIS gets its weapons.
The shortest is via a Balkan new website, which highlights:Link:http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/arti...ort-12-15-2017Quote:
...more than half of ISIS’s new weapons in Syria came from Bulgaria.
The second via 'Wired' is a far longer report on CAR's on-site inspector, which is a good read too, especially the factories in Tel Afar.
Link:https://www.wired.com/story/terror-i...-supply-chain/
The main report is by a NGO, Conflict Armament Research using open sources and on-site inspection. Their summary:Link:http://www.conflictarm.com/publications/Quote:
This report is the result of more than three years of field investigation into Islamic State supply chains. It presents an analysis of more than 40,000 items recovered from the group between 2014 and 2017. These items encompass weapons, ammunition, and the traceable components and chemical precursors used by the group to manufacture improvised explosive devices.
A "lurker" recommended this report by Ash Carter, ex-Defence Secretary, published by the Belfer Center in October 2017.
Link to a two page summary:https://www.belfercenter.org/sites/d...ager%20web.pdf
The full report:https://www.belfercenter.org/LastingDefeat
He refers in July 2015 to:This seems an odd statement:Quote:
Intelligence on ISIS was almost entirely lacking—we did not understand who our enemy was, where he was, or what he would do next.
A lengthy passage on Turkey and then this, not very diplomatic:Quote:
Iran has had virtually nothing to do with the liberation of Iraqi territory, and every Iraqi can see that.
Quote:
Regrettably, the Gulf countries have so fall fallen short of doing what they can. (In contrast) Singapore and Malaysia joined the counter-ISIS coalition: Singapore’s highly professional military contributed imagery analysts and an aerial refueling tanker to the fight in Iraq and Syria; and as a majority-Muslim nation, Malaysia’s public embrace of the fight against ISIS had major significance.
"In the opposite corner" is the main enemy ISIS.
Hassan Hassan, a journalist who writes for several papers and books, has this article, entitled:Link:https://www.theguardian.com/commenti...y-new-strategyQuote:
Its dreams of a caliphate are gone. Now Isis has a deadly new strategy; territorial losses in Syria and Iraq mean Islamic State militants are igniting bloody sectarian insurgencies elsewhere