The Islamic State (Terrorist Organization) | RAND
Jul 1, 2022 · ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria), also known as ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant), is a Sunni jihadist group with a particularly violent ideology that calls itself a caliphate and claims religious authority over all Muslims. It was inspired by al Qaida but later publicly expelled from it. RAND terrorism experts have analyzed the …
Foundations of the Islamic State - RAND Corporation
May 18, 2016 · This research was sponsored by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and conducted within the International Security and Defense Policy Center of the RAND National Defense Research Institute, a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the Unified Combatant Commands, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the defense ...
How ISIS Is Transforming | RAND
Sep 25, 2017 · ISIS will likely continue to use encrypted communications to direct terrorist attacks abroad, even as it morphs into a less centralized entity. This virtual element will likely assume even greater significance, as the group exhorts its followers around the world to commit acts of violence in its name until the caliphate can be restored at some ...
ISIS's Use of Social Media Still Poses a Threat to Stability in the ...
Dec 11, 2018 · ISIS's strategic use of social media demonstrates the resourcefulness of the terrorist-cum-insurgent organization, which mobilized an estimated 40,000 foreign nationals from 110 countries to join the group. Increasing internet access in both Africa and the Middle East means that ISIS also has a new pool of potential supporters who, through ...
The Air War Against the Islamic State - RAND Corporation
Feb 5, 2021 · Airpower played a pivotal role in the U.S.-led fight against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) from 2014 to 2019 and contributed to the success of Operation Inherent Resolve. This report sheds light on the impact of the air operations in Operation Inherent Resolve and whether airpower could have been applied differently to achieve ...
The Latest Attacks on America Follow a Familiar Playbook
Jan 3, 2025 · The ISIS article appeared four months after the deadliest jihadist vehicle ramming attack in Nice, France, when a driver plowed a heavy cargo truck through a crowd watching Bastille Day fireworks, killing 86 and injuring hundreds on July 14, 2016. The attack in Nice, more than jihadist exhortations, inspired others, reflecting a contagion ...
The Power of Affiliates: Which ISIS Franchise Could Become the …
Oct 9, 2018 · With ISIS franchise groups and affiliates across the globe, there is no shortage of contenders to supplant ISIS as the world's most dangerous terrorist group. Many factors could fuel the rise of a new Islamic State (ISIS) offshoot, including the relative weakness of the security forces in the area where the terrorists are operating, so it is ...
What Life Under ISIS Looked Like from Space | RAND
Jan 9, 2018 · The researchers collected data on more than 150 cities in Iraq and Syria, month by month. They estimated that as much as a third of the population had fled areas under ISIS control. Factories closed; fields dried up. In Syria, more than 60 percent of the lights went dark as ISIS struggled to restore electricity or fuel generators.
ISIS Is So Desperate It's Turning to the Drug Trade | RAND
Jul 25, 2017 · Many ISIS recruits, particularly those from Europe, have relied on drug trafficking as a means of generating revenue at a low level in what Swedish terrorism expert Magnus Ranstorp has called “micro-financing the Caliphate.” Proceeds garnered from peddling narcotics affords jihadis in Europe the financial flexibility to travel back and ...
Terrorism Financing | RAND
Aug 8, 2019 · ISIS's New Plans to Get Rich and Wreak Havoc. Although the Islamic State has lost nearly 98 percent of the territory it once controlled, it is ripe for a comeback in Sunni-majority areas of Iraq and Syria. The group has proven that it is capable of making money even without controlling large population centers.