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Islamic state plots disrupted and operatives arrested in 4 countries
Authorities in Kuwait, Israel, Turkey, and France disrupted suspected Islamic State plots or arrested the organization’s sympathizers over the past month. The incidents demonstrate the jihadist group’s continued ability to recruit and radicalize individuals despite more than a decade of sustained counterterrorism pressure.
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The UN Monitoring Team’s latest report: Where the global jihad stands now
Generation Jihad guest host Edmund Fitton-Brown, FDD senior fellow and former coordinator of the UN Monitoring Team, talks with Colin Smith, the Monitoring Team’s current coordinator, about what the latest 1267 report shows about Al Qaeda, the Islamic State, and their affiliates, plus how the report is built and the challenges of keeping the spotlight on jihadist groups.
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Top Islamic State spokesman killed in Yemen
Abu Hudhayfah al Ansari, who has been the official Islamic State spokesman for three years, was reported killed in a joint Saudi-Yemeni special forces raid in Hadhramaut Governorate. The Islamic State has yet to comment on Ansari’s status.
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Albany woman charged with plotting to attack New York Capitol in support of Islamic State
Jessica Bowie was arrested on August 19 and is accused of plotting to bomb the New York State Capitol. Her arrest marks the fifth Islamic State-linked terrorism case or incident in the United States this year.
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UN report: The jihad’s new center of gravity
Generation Jihad’s Bill Roggio and Edmund Fitton-Brown, FDD senior fellow and former coordinator of the UN Monitoring Team, unpack the new UN 1267 report on the global state of the Islamic State, Al Qaeda, and their affiliated groups.
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Suspect in deadly Berlin Pride attack pledged allegiance to Islamic State, prosecutors say
A 21-year-old German who had reportedly previously attempted to join the Islamic State allegedly carried out the deadly vehicle-ramming attack at Berlin’s Pride festival, killing one person and injuring 29 others.
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Iraqi Prime Minister Zaidi meets President Trump, Secretary Hegseth in Washington
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al Zaidi met US President Donald Trump and other US officials during his first official visit to Washington since taking office. The talks focused on security cooperation, investment, and Iraq’s plans to bring weapons held by Iranian-backed militias under state control. While Trump praised Zaidi’s leadership, the visit also drew criticism from pro-Iranian factions in Iraq and skepticism from some US lawmakers.
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US kills Islamic State senior leader in Syria, Damascus rejects Lebanon intervention
A recent precision strike against a senior Islamic State leader underscored Washington’s continued counterterrorism mission in Syria. Separately, US President Donald Trump urged Syria’s new government to consider intervening against Hezbollah in neighboring Lebanon, but Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa stated his country will not send forces, preferring diplomacy over military action.
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Generation Jihad | The next caliphate battleground
While attention remains fixed elsewhere, jihadist groups are expanding across Africa. Bill Roggio and Caleb Weiss revisit the growing threats in Mali, Nigeria, and Somalia—and why the continent remains one of the most consequential battlegrounds in the war against Al Qaeda and the Islamic State.
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US, Nigerian forces kill senior Islamic State leader
The US military, “in coordination with the Armed Forces of Nigeria,” killed Abu Bilal al Minuki and several other senior Islamic State leaders in an operation in northeastern Nigeria. President Trump and US Africa Command described Minuki as the Islamic State’s second in command and director of global operations.
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Syria thwarts Hezbollah plot, vows at UN to fight terrorist groups
Syria says it disrupted a Hezbollah-linked plot and uncovered rockets near the Quneitra area of the Golan Heights. Officials also reported arrests tied to another terrorist cell, plus the seizure of 500,000 Captagon pills in a joint anti-smuggling operation with Iraq. At the United Nations, Syria pledged to continue counterterrorism operations, while criticizing Israeli actions in southern Syria.
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Gunmen fire at police outside of Israeli consulate in Istanbul
Three attackers opened fire on police officers outside the Israeli consulate in Istanbul, Turkey earlier today. Turkish police killed one shooter and captured two others. The affiliation of the attackers is currently unknown, but the incident comes almost a week after the Islamic State called for attacks on Jews during the Passover holiday.
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Islamic State ramps up attacks on Syrian government after issuing threats
The Islamic State intensified attacks against Syrian government forces in February. The uptick followed a voice recording released by the group’s spokesman, Abu Hudhayfah al Ansari, that announced “a new phase of operations” in Syria.
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5,000 Islamic State detainees transferred to Iraq from Syria, will face investigations
Around 5,000 Islamic State detainees have been transferred from Syria to Iraq under a US-facilitated mission that began in late January, following security shifts in eastern Syria. The number of detainees transferred is expected to reach up to 7,000. Iraqi officials say the transfers may conclude by February 12 and that the detainees will face investigation and prosecution. Iraq has stressed it will not become a permanent repository for foreign fighters and has urged countries to repatriate their citizens now in Iraqi custody.
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Syria joins anti-Islamic State coalition meeting as territory transition with SDF continues
Syria’s foreign minister joined a US-led anti-Islamic State coalition meeting in Riyadh on February 9, signaling deeper coordination after Damascus joined the coalition in November. The meeting followed a January 29 agreement between the Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces enabling government deployments into northeastern Syria. Coalition members praised the deal and discussed transfers of Islamic State detainees to Iraq. As Syrian forces move into SDF-held areas, the transition faces challenges, particularly in Kobani, where humanitarian conditions remain dire despite reduced violence.
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After Damascus-SDF deal, Syrian security forces deploy in northeastern Syria
Syrian government forces deployed into Al Hasakah and Qamishli in eastern Syria in early February under a January 30 agreement with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The deal is aimed at ending clashes and restoring central authority in mainly Kurdish areas that the SDF still controls. The government deployment coincided with reports of continued US transfers of Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq and US strikes on Islamic State targets.
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Islamic State video details extent of attack in Niamey
A new video released by the Islamic State details the jihadist group’s brazen attack on Niger’s international airport and military airbase in the capital of Niamey. The footage undercuts statements made by Nigerien officials, indicating the attack was much worse than initially reported.
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Islamic State claims assault on airport in Niger’s capital
The Islamic State has officially claimed last week’s assault on Niger’s Diori Hamani International Airport in the capital of Niamey, which also hosts the military Air Base 101. Niger claims the assault was repelled, with Russia’s Africa Corps mercenary group also taking credit for the defense.
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US withdraws from Iraqi airbase, transfers Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq
US forces completed their withdrawal from Ain al Assad Airbase, the Iraqi government said on January 18, fulfilling a US agreement with Iraqi authorities going back to 2024. The withdrawal took place as Syrian government forces pushed back the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces in Syria. On January 21, US Central Command said it would transfer up to 7,000 Islamic State detainees from Syria to Iraq.
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Fate of prisons holding Islamic State fighters uncertain as Syrian government fights Syrian Democratic Forces
Syrian government forces advancing into eastern Syria are increasingly taking over areas where Islamic State members have been held in prisons and detention facilities by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). The SDF said it lost control of Al Shaddadi prison, and the Syrian government asserted that it would secure the facility and round up prisoners who may have fled. Clashes also occurred near Aqtan prison north of Raqqa.
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US military strikes Islamic State in Syria
US Central Command stated that the strikes were in “direct response to the deadly ISIS [Islamic State] attack on U.S. and Syrian forces in Palmyra, Syria, on Dec. 13, 2025.” However, the Islamic State has not claimed credit for that attack, which was carried out by a member of the Syrian security forces that are largely comprised of Al Qaeda’s former branch in Syria and Al Qaeda-allied groups.
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US strikes Islamic State in Nigeria
President Donald Trump announced that US forces struck Islamic State targets in northwestern Nigeria on December 25 after the Nigerian government reportedly requested military action from the United States. The strikes took place in Sokoto State, which borders Niger and has been one of the scenes of jihadist expansion from the Sahel into Nigeria.
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US launches widespread airstrikes against Islamic State in Syria after deadly Palmyra attack
On December 19, US Central Command announced that US forces conducted “a large-scale strike against ISIS infrastructure and weapons sites in Syria.” Al Arabiya reported that the United States hit “70 ISIS targets in sites in central Syria.”
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US highlights anti-Islamic State operations after soldiers killed in Syria
US Central Command (CENTCOM) published new data in the wake of the killing of two American soldiers and an interpreter in Syria on December 13, showing that US and partner forces have carried out 80 operations in the country since July 2025. “We will continue to work closely with our Syrian partners to hunt down ISIS networks and prevent their resurgence,” Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of CENTCOM, said. There have also been several security operations in Syria and Iraq conducted by Syrian and Iraqi security forces in the wake of the attack.
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Syria investigates deadly attack on US forces, US names 2 National Guard soldiers as victims
The Iowa National Guard released the names of two US soldiers who were killed by an Islamic State member in Syria on December 13. In the aftermath of the attack, Syrian Foreign Minister Assad al Shaibani spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on December 14 and said the Syrian government would work with the US to degrade and destroy the Islamic State (IS). Syria’s Interior Ministry also conducted an anti-IS operation and detained five people. In northern Syria, an armed group killed four Syrian Interior Ministry personnel.
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3 Americans killed, 3 injured in Islamic State ambush attack in Palmyra, Syria
US Central Command announced that “two U.S. service members and one U.S. civilian were killed, and three service members were injured, as a result of an ambush by a lone [Islamic State] gunman in Syria.” A Syrian government official confirmed reports that the attacker was a member of the government’s security forces, stating that he had been under investigation and may have had “extremist ideas.”
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Analysis: The Islamic State’s war on Christians in Congo
The Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP), locally known as the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), has killed almost 1,000 civilians this year, with the vast majority of its victims being Christian villagers. ISCAP has explicitly framed its attacks as a war against Congo’s Christians. However, the group’s rhetoric has changed in recent months to also focus on trying to convert Christians to Islam.
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Islamic State–linked activity on the rise in Israel and the West Bank
The recent arrest of four East Jerusalem residents for their ties to the Islamic State reflects a rise in terrorism cases linked to the jihadist group in the West Bank and Israel. Israeli authorities have noted the trend and point to online radicalization as a factor in this emerging pattern.
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Analysis: Islamic State redoubles call for jihad in Sudan, urges foreign fighters to migrate
For the second time this year, the Islamic State explicitly called for its supporters and other Muslims to take up arms in Sudan under its name. Simultaneously, it urged foreign fighters, particularly from North Africa, to travel to the country to partake in this jihad.
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After sectarian clashes in Aleppo, US, SDF, and Syrian government officials meet in Damascus
Syrian President Ahmed al Sharaa met with US Envoy Tom Barrack and the head of US Central Command, Admiral Brad Cooper, in Damascus on October 7. The meeting came in the wake of clashes between factions backed by the Syrian transitional government and Kurdish fighters in two neighborhoods in Aleppo. The head of the Syrian Democratic Forces, Mazlum Abdi, also met with Syria’s defense minister and agreed to a ceasefire between the SDF and government forces. Barrack, Cooper, and Abdi separately met in eastern Syria on October 6 to discuss integration between Syria’s east and Damascus, plus continued operations against…
