Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Islamic State الدولة الإسلامية (Arabic) ad-Dawlah al-ʾIslāmiyyah Rayat al-`Uqab, the Eagle Banner; also called the black flag of jihad Flag Coat of arms Motto: باقية وتتمدد (Arabic) Bāqiyah wa-Tatamaddad Remaining and Expanding Status Unrecognized state Capital Ar-Raqqah, Syria 35°57′N 39°1′E Official languages Arabic Government Islamic caliphate - Caliph Ibrahim Establishment - Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant declared 9 April 2013 - Caliphate declared 29 June 2014 Participant in the Iraq War, the Global War on Terrorism, The Iraqi insurgency, and the Syrian Civil War Flag of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.svg Flag of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Active 2003–present (various names) Ideology Anti-Shiaism Salafist jihadism Wahhabism Worldwide Caliphate Leaders Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (Caliph) Abu Omar al-Shishani (Field Commander) Abu Mohammad al-Adnani (Spokesman) Headquarters Ar-Raqqah, Syria Area of operations- Iraq, Syria, Lebanon Strength 7,000–20,000 (up to 6,000 in Iraq and 3,000–5,000 in Syria) Part of al-Qaeda (2004–2014) Originated as Jamaat al-Tawhid wa-al-Jihad al-Qaeda in Iraq Mujahideen Shura Council Islamic State of Iraq Allies Boko Haram Ansar al-Deen Front Naqshbandi Army Free Iraqi Army Opponents Al-Nusra Front al-Qaeda Ansar al-Islam Iraq Awakening Councils Hezbollah Iran Islamic Revolutionary Guard Iraq Iraqi Armed Forces Iraq Iraqi Shia militias Iraqi Turkmen Front Lebanon Lebanese Armed Forces Multi-National Force (2004–09) Peoples Protection Units Peshmerga Qaraqosh Protection Committee Saudi Arabia Saudi Armed Forces (border protection) Syriac Military Council Syria Syrian Armed Forces Syria Syrian Opposition Free syrian army coat of arms.svgFree Syrian Army Syria Revolutionaries Front Logo.gif Syria Revolutionaries Front Islamic Front Army of Mujahedeen Turkey Turkish Armed Forces (border clashes) US Forces – Iraq (2010–11) United States United States (Aerial Operations) United States Navy Battles and wars Iraq War Second Battle of Fallujah Civil war in Iraq (2006–07) Iraqi Insurgency Anbar campaign (2013–14) 2014 Northern Iraq offensive 2014 American intervention in Iraq Battle of Sinjar Syrian Civil War 2013 Latakia offensive Syrian Kurdish–Islamist conflict Battle of Qalamoun Inter-rebel conflict in Syria Battle of Aleppo Deir ez-Zor clashes The Islamic State (IS) (Arabic: الدولة الإسلامية ad-Dawlah al-ʾIslāmiyyah), also known as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS /ˈaɪsɪs/),[a] is a jihadist group. In its self-proclaimed status as a caliphate, it claims religious authority over all Muslims across the world[48] and aspires to bring much of the Muslim-inhabited regions of the world under its direct political control, beginning with territory in the Levant region, which includes Jordan, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Cyprus, and an area in southern Turkey that includes Hatay. The group has been officially designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the United Nations Security Council, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia, and has been widely described as a terrorist group by Western and other media sources. The group, in its original form, was composed of and supported by a variety of Sunni insurgent groups, including its predecessor organizations, Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) (2003–2006), Mujahideen Shura Council (2006–2006) and the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) (2006–2013), other insurgent groups such as Jeish al-Taiifa al-Mansoura, Jaysh al-Fatiheen, Jund al-Sahaba and Katbiyan Ansar Al-Tawhid wal Sunnah, and a number of Iraqi tribes that profess Sunni Islam. ISIS grew significantly as an organization owing to its participation in the Syrian Civil War and the strength of its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Economic and political discrimination against Iraqi Sunnis since the fall of Saddam Hussein also helped it to gain support. At the height of the 2003–2011 Iraq War, its forerunners enjoyed a significant presence in the Iraqi governorates of Al Anbar, Nineveh, Kirkuk, most of Salah ad Din, parts of Babil, Diyala and Baghdad, and claimed Baqubah as a capital city. In the ongoing Syrian Civil War, ISIS has a large presence in the Syrian governorates of Ar-Raqqah, Idlib and Aleppo. ISIS is known for its harsh interpretation of the Islamic faith and sharia law and has a record of brutal violence, which is directed at Shia Muslims and Christians in particular. It has at least 4,000 fighters in its ranks in Iraq who, in addition to attacks on government and military targets, have claimed responsibility for attacks that have killed thousands of civilians. ISIS had close links with al-Qaeda until 2014, but in February of that year, after an eight-month power struggle, al-Qaeda cut all ties with the group, reportedly for its brutality and notorious intractability. ISIS’s original aim was to establish a caliphate in the Sunni-majority regions of Iraq. Following its involvement in the Syrian Civil War, this expanded to include controlling Sunni-majority areas of Syria. A caliphate was proclaimed on 29 June 2014, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi—now known as Amir al-Muminin Caliph Ibrahim—was named as its caliph, and the group was renamed the Islamic State.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 06:42:29 +0000
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