Also known as Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and Islamic State (IS).
The aim of ISIS is to create an Islamic state across Sunni areas of Iraq and in Syria.
ISIS is known for killing dozens of people at a time and carrying out public executions, crucifixions and other acts. It has taken over large swaths of northern and western Iraq.
The group currently controls hundreds of square miles. It ignores international borders and has a presence from Syria’s Mediterranean coast to south of Baghdad. It rules by Sharia law.
ISIS’s initial strategy for revenue was through extortion and robbery. Recently, al-Baghdadi’s strategy shifted to generating resources through large-scale attacks aimed at capturing and holding territory.
Unable to serve under the new Iraq government after Saddam Hussein’s military was disbanded, former Iraqi soldiers became ISIS fighters, according to Middle East expert Fawaz Gerges.
Leader:
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi: Very little is known about al-Baghdadi, but a biography posted on jihadist websites in 2013 said he earned a doctorate in Islamic studies from a university in Baghdad.
–
October 3, 2014 – ISIS releases a video showing the apparent beheading of hostage Alan Henning. It blames the killing on the UK for joining the U.S.-led bombing campaign against ISIS in Iraq and Syria. In the same video, the group threatens the life of American aid worker Peter Kassig, also known as Abdul-Rahman Kassig.
November 3, 2014 – The Iraqi government announces ISIS militants have killed 322 members of the Albu Minr tribe in a recent series of executions. According to Sheikh Nabil Al-Ga’oud, a leader in the Albu Minr tribe, the latest of these incidents occurred November 1, in which 75 members of the tribe were killed near the town of Hit.
November 13, 2014 – An ISIS social media account posts an audio message purportedly recorded by leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The speaker is heard saying the U.S.-led coalition to destroy ISIS is “terrified, weak and powerless.” The 17-minute audio says the coalition’s effort has been a “failure” and the coalition will be “forced” to “send ground forces to their deaths and destruction.” The speaker also urges Islamic State fighters to take their battle everywhere and “light the Earth with fire upon all tyrants,” and mentions U.S. President Barack Obama’s plan to deploy 1,500 additional U.S. troops to Iraq “under the claim they are advisers.” CNN cannot confirm the authenticity of the online message or when it was recorded.
November 14, 2014 – The U.N. Independent International Commission of Inquiry on Syria concludes that ISIS has committed war crimes and crimes against humanity, and leaders of the militant group should be held accountable by organizations such as the International Criminal Court.
November 16, 2014 – ISIS militants claim to have beheaded American hostage Peter Kassig in a video published to the Internet. Peter Kassig, also known as Abdul-Rahman Kassig, is the fifth Westerner whom ISIS claims to have beheaded via video messages.
January 22, 2015 – The coalition airstrikes kill thousands of ISIS fighters, including half of the top command of the terror group. The number may be as high as 6,000 or higher, according to U.S. ambassador to Iraq Stuart Jones.
