The terrorist group ISIS is now operating within a number of Middle Eastern Nations, as well as in Europa and possibly even here in the United States now. They are a real threat, and something that should be addressed, hopefully by the new Republican Administration next year.
Thanks for sharing this article Travis! On Thu, Mar 10, 2016 at 2:50 PM, Travis <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > > > > http://thecipherbrief.com/article/middle-east/affiliates-isis > > > > Containing the Cancer > > March 10, 2016 | Bennett Seftel > > > > From its base in Syria and Iraq, the Islamic State (ISIS or ISIL) has > morphed into a worldwide jihadi network. Casting a vast net is part of > ISIS’s grand strategy, which focuses on using terrorist tactics to > establish an Islamic Caliphate across Muslim lands and attacking Western > targets as part of its apocalyptic vision. > > “The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has become the preeminent > terrorist threat because of its self-described caliphate in Syria and Iraq, > its branches and emerging branches in other countries, and its increasing > ability to direct and inspire attacks against a wide range of targets > around the world,” wrote Director of National Intelligence James Clapper in > his 2016 Worldwide Threat Assessment released in February. > > On Monday, this sentiment was echoed by Lisa Monaco, a top > counterterrorism official at the White House, who stated that that > terrorist threat today “is broader, more diffuse—and less predictable—than > at any time since 9/11.” > > When offering their assessments of the campaign to degrade and ultimately > destroy ISIS, some U.S. officials, including Brett McGurk, the Special > Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter ISIL, are quick to > point out that “ISIL has not had a significant battlefield victory {in > Syria and Iraq} since May 2015 and over a dozen major cities have been > liberated from ISIL since the start of the campaign.” Such statements > indicate that the U.S.-led coalition is making headway in its effort to > eradicate ISIS. > > Despite territorial losses to its self-declared caliphate, ISIS remains > committed to spreading its ideological message, harsh rule, and terrorist > objectives to new outposts. “ISIL has reacted to these losses in Iraq and > Syria by lashing out overseas – conducting the kinds of terrorist attacks > that Beirut and Paris witnessed in November and Istanbul and Jakarta > witnessed in January,” explained McGurk in his testimony before the House > Foreign Affairs Committee last month. “The Islamic State has indeed been > diverting resources for the larger cause,” writes The Cipher Brief expert > Aki Peritz. > > And this strategy appears to be working. While much attention has been > directed at battling ISIS in Syria and Iraq, the terrorist group has also > been able to solidify key strongholds in Libya and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. > During the past few months, ISIS has sent several of its leaders to Libya > in an effort to avoid the U.S.-led aerial bombardment, and ISIS’s offshoot > in the Sinai continues to conduct smaller scale attacks. > > ISIS’s metastasis does not stop there. The group has worked to cultivate > branches in Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, > Somalia, West Africa, and the Caucasus. Earlier this month, estimates > placed the number of ISIS global affiliates at 43, up from the 34 reported > last December. Since ISIS’s ascension to the spotlight of the global jihadi > scene two years ago, several terrorist organizations, most notably Boko > Haram in Nigeria and certain elements of al-Shabab in Somalia, have > switched their allegiance from al Qaeda’s emir, Ayman al Zawahiri, to ISIS > leader Abu Bakr al Baghdadi. > > Furthermore, ISIS continues to grab headlines for attacks outside of Syria > and Iraq. Earlier this week, ISIS militants launched raids along the > Tunisian-Libyan border, killing several members of Tunisia’s security > forces. Last week, Jordanian authorities foiled an ISIS terrorist plot near > the Jordanian-Syrian border, killing seven militants. On Monday, > Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner and senior counterterrorism > coordinator in the UK, Mark Rowley, warned that the UK authorities should > be on alert for an “enormous and spectacular” terrorist atrocity planned by > ISIS. > > Thus, “as ISIS faces an uncertain future, regular setbacks in Syria/Iraq > motivate them to expand into other areas,” writes The Cipher Brief expert > Dr. Michael W.S. Ryan. Ousting ISIS from its headquarters is critical for > curbing the group’s momentum and exposing its weaknesses, but an effective > counter-ISIS strategy must also take into account ISIS affiliates outside > of Syria and Iraq as they continue to threaten regional and global security > > > > > __._,_.___ > ------------------------------ > Posted by: "Beowulf" <[email protected]> > ------------------------------ > > > Visit Your Group > <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/grendelreport/info;_ylc=X3oDMTJmdnA0djEyBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzIwMTk0ODA2BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTMyMzY2NwRzZWMDdnRsBHNsawN2Z2hwBHN0aW1lAzE0NTc2Mjk1MTY-> > > > [image: Yahoo! Groups] > <https://groups.yahoo.com/neo;_ylc=X3oDMTJldGhnMGhjBF9TAzk3NDc2NTkwBGdycElkAzIwMTk0ODA2BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTMyMzY2NwRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNnZnAEc3RpbWUDMTQ1NzYyOTUxNg--> > • Privacy <https://info.yahoo.com/privacy/us/yahoo/groups/details.html> • > Unsubscribe > <[email protected]?subject=Unsubscribe> • Terms > of Use <https://info.yahoo.com/legal/us/yahoo/utos/terms/> > > __,_._,___ > > > -- > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ > * It's active and moderated. 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