Publications

ISIS's Regional Campaign: March 2016

April 1, 2016 - Harleen Gambhir

ISIS continued to pursue ongoing campaigns both regionally and further abroad throughout March. The group carried out a spectacular, sophisticated terror attack in Brussels on March 22. The attack, which was unprecedented in Belgium, is part of ISIS’s  ongoing campaign to attack and polarize the West, sowing disorder to make way for future expansion to a global Caliphate. The group also continued to demonstrate its intent to remain and expand in North Africa by establishing lines of communication between the group’s Libyan stronghold and ISIS-linked groups in Tunisia and Algeria.

ISIS Sanctuary Map: March 31, 2016

March 31, 2016 - Harleen Gambhir

Since the publication of ISW’s last ISIS sanctuary map on March 3, 2016, ISIS lost control of the Syrian city of Palmyra to pro-regime forces. Additionally, Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) launched an operation on March 12 to recapture Hit district, and as of March 31 the ISF recaptured the subdistricts of al-Muhammadi, south of the town of Hit, and Kubaisa, west of Hit.

ISIS Sanctuary Map: March 31, 2016

March 31, 2016 - Harleen Gambhir

Since the publication of ISW’s last ISIS sanctuary map on March 3, 2016, ISIS lost control of the Syrian city of Palmyra to pro-regime forces. Additionally, Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) launched an operation on March 12 to recapture Hit district, and as of March 31 the ISF recaptured the subdistricts of al-Muhammadi, south of the town of Hit, and Kubaisa, west of Hit.

Iraq Situation Report: March 22 - 28, 2016

March 28, 2016 - Patrick Martin

Pressure continues to mount on Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi to reshuffle the cabinet. Abadi misses Sadrist deadline leading to Muqtada al-Sadr staging a sit-in in the Green Zone.

Russian-Syrian-Iranian Coalition Seizes ISIS-Held Palmyra

March 27, 2016 - Chris Kozak

Pro-regime forces seized Palmyra as well as the adjacent Palmyra Airbase in Eastern Homs Province on March 27 after ISIS withdrew from the city, completing an operation that began on March 7 with the aim of recapturing the strategic crossroads.

ISIS's Campaign in Europe: March 2016

March 25, 2016 - Harleen Gambhir

ISIS is using its foreign fighters and safe haven in Iraq and Syria to execute a terror campaign within Europe. ISIS’s March 22 Brussels attacks support a larger strategy to punish, destabilize, and polarize the West. ISIS will likely continue to attempt attacks in France and Belgium in 2016, using its large Francophone foreign fighter population and local supporters.

ISIS's Campaign in Europe: January 2014 to March 25, 2016

March 25, 2016 - Harleen Gambhir

ISIS is using its foreign fighters and safe haven in Iraq and Syria to execute a terror campaign within Europe. ISIS’s March 22 Brussels attacks support a larger strategy to punish, destabilize, and polarize the West. ISIS will likely continue to attempt attacks in France and Belgium in 2016, using its large Francophone foreign fighter population and local supporters. ISIS’s support networks in southern Europe may enable ISIS’s operatives to launch operations in other parts of the continent, including Austria, Germany, Spain, and Italy.

ISIS's Campaign in Europe: December 5, 2015 to March 25, 2016

March 25, 2016 - Harleen Gambhir

 ISIS is using its foreign fighters and safe haven in Iraq and Syria to execute a terror campaign within Europe. ISIS’s March 22 Brussels attacks support a larger strategy to punish, destabilize, and polarize the West. ISIS will likely continue to attempt attacks in France and Belgium in 2016, using its large Francophone foreign fighter population and local supporters.

The Battle for Palmyra: March 2016

March 25, 2016 - Chris Kozak

A new map from ISW showing the viewshed for Palmyra as of March 2016.  Regime troops continue their attack and advance on the city and its environs.

ISIS Global Strategy: March 2016

March 25, 2016 - Harleen Gambhir

ISW’s new ISIS Global strategy map places Chad and Niger in ISIS’s Far Abroad campaign to reflect recruitment by ISIS’s Libyan affiliate and attacks by ISIS’s Nigerian affiliate (also known as Boko Haram), respectively.

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