Iraq
‘Boots in the air’: US helicopters return to combat in Iraq for first time
Author Archives: Lisa Lundquist
Islamic State
Turkish military unhappy with parliament’s lack of guidance
Islamic State
Street fighting rages in Syrian town as Islamic State moves in
Iraq
Pentagon yet to decide on Syrian rebel force central to offensive against Islamic State
Islamic State
Secretly filming in the Islamic State-held city of Raqqah
Islamic State
Kobane: Islamic State ‘may soon take Syria-Turkey border town’
France
The Defense Ministry rejected a media report that among those targeted in coalition airstrikes against the Al Nusrah Front in Syria last month was a French intelligence operative who had defected to al Qaeda; he is said to have survived the strikes and to be leading fighters in Irbil. The Foreign Ministry refused to comment. […]
United Kingdom
RAF jets carried out an airstrike last night against Islamic State fighters near Ramadi who were firing on Iraqi forces. Whitehall officials acknowledged the credibility of reports that two British jihadists were among some 180 Islamic State fighters swapped last month by Turkey for 46 Turkish personnel held captive by the IS in Mosul. The […]
Iraq
Arab Leaders Attack Islamic State With Intel
Iraq
Islamic State accused of using chlorine gas on Iraqi soldiers
China
ISIS’ Ammunition Is Shown to Have Origins in US and China
Syria
A female Kurdish YPG commander carried out a suicide bombing against an Islamic State position outside Kobane. Another female Kurdish fighter near Kobane killed herself with her last bullet to avoid being taken captive by the IS. Turkey has closed the border crossing at Kobane, while clashes continue and IS is using heavy weapons. Coalition […]
Lebanon
Clashes erupted at Hezbollah bases from Baalbek to Arsal between Syria-based Al Nusrah Front fighters and Hezbollah forces seeking to repel them; at least 16 Al Nusrah fighters, including commander Mohammed Khalid Hamza Suhaib, and two Hezbollah fighters were said to have been killed. Other reports said the infiltrators were from the Islamic State. The […]
Islamic State
Drones spot ISIS slayer ‘Jihadi John’ in Syria
Egypt
Security forces arrested four men in Port Said suspected of recruiting fighters for the Islamic State. The Sinai-based terrorist group Ansar Jerusalem (Ansar Bayt al Maqdis) released a video showing three Egyptians being beheaded and a fourth being shot dead; the group had accused the men of serving as spies for Israel and Egypt.
Germany
Germany plans expanded engagement against Islamic State in Iraq
Somalia
Somali and African Union forces have taken partial control of Barawe, a coastal town held by Shabaab for the past six years. Shabaab fighters were said to have made a tactical retreat from the town two days ago. Some 25 Shabaab fighters were killed in clashes outside Barawe over the past two days. Jubbaland president […]
Russia
A suicide bombing outside a Grozny concert hall, where celebrations marking City Day and the birthday of Chechnya president Ramzan Kadyrov were taking place, killed five policemen and wounded at least eight other people. The bomber, 19-year-old local resident Opti Mudarov, had been stopped at a security checkpoint near the entrance to the hall.
United Kingdom
Police are investigating the appearance of UK jihadist Abu Saeed al Britani in a recent IS video. Prime Minister Cameron called for a special forces raid to capture IS executioner “Jihadi John.” Ex-Gitmo inmate Moazzem Begg is planning to sue the British government on false imprisonment charges; he has admitted to having been “involved in […]
Islamic State
Air strikes against Islamic State are not working, say Syrian Kurds
Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
US drone strike kills senior Uzbek commander in Pakistan
Al Nusrah Front
In Golan, Imagined Risks Become All Too Real
Islamic State
Biden Apologizes to Turkish President
Syria
Coalition warplanes struck at targets in Deir Izzour, where the Islamic State is reportedly paying children to publicize the group; in Aleppo; in Hama near Morek, where regime forces are fighting the Islamic Front; in Hasakah, where 30 non-Syrian IS fighters were killed; in Idlib, reattacking Salma; in Latakia; and in Reef Dimashq. The Al […]
Iraq
Kurds issue desperate call to arms as Islamic State closes in
Al Nusrah Front
Opinion over jihadists divides hajj pilgrims
Islamic State
Islamic State backs up force in Syria with threats
Lebanon
The Army repelled an attempt by gunmen in Wadi Hmeid and al-Masyadeh to infiltrate near Arsal. Jihadists in the area are said to be seeking access to Arsal for food and fuel. Lebanese forces discovered a 50-kilogram bomb set to detonate near a military checkpoint outside Arsal and disabled it. A few days earlier, over […]
Islamic State
New US raids hit extremists outside Syria Kurdish town
Iraq
Vatican seeks Mideast Christians’ right of return