About 2,000 Islamic State fighters remain in Syria’s Raqqa: U.S. envoy

About 2,000 Islamic State fighters are estimated to remain in the Syrian city of Raqqa, fighting for their survival in the face of an offensive by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, a senior U.S. official said on Friday. Brett McGurk, U.S. special envoy for the coalition against Islamic State, said the SDF had cleared about […]

No coordination between Lebanon and Syrian armies against IS: Lebanese military source

The Lebanese army will not coordinate with the Syrian army to fight against Islamic State in the Lebanese-Syrian border zone, a military source told Reuters on Saturday, rejecting a local media report of direct military cooperation between the two. The source said the Lebanese army had the military capability to confront and defeat the group […]

Australia details ‘sophisticated’ plot by ISIS to take down plane

SYDNEY, Australia — The Australian police described on Friday an elaborate terrorist plot in which two men from Sydney tried to place an explosive supplied by the Islamic State on a flight last month, an operation that officials said was among “the most sophisticated plots that has ever been attempted on Australian soil.” The two […]

A British volunteer fighting ISIS in Syria reportedly killed himself to avoid being captured

A British man who had volunteered with the Kurds to fight ISIS in Syria reportedly killed himself after getting surrounded by militants. Ryan Lock, 20, from West Sussex, sustained a leg injury while fighting in Raqqa on Dec. 21 before getting surrounded by ISIS fighters, The Guardian reported. He then shot himself to avoid getting captured. The YPG told the […]

Trump’s Advisors Taking Longer Than Expected With Afghanistan Plan

The Trump administration’s plan for Afghanistan as well as their policy toward Pakistan is taking “longer than originally announced and intended,” said Laurel Miller, the former U.S. envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Miller said to the media that, “there are no easy answers, there are no easy solutions. After 16 years, a lot of different […]

Unlikely friends: ISIS and the Italian Mafia working together to bring oil into Europe: report

A new and nefarious connection between criminal networks and jihadi groups is potentially emerging across the Mediterranean, according to Italian police. Authorities in Rome are investigating links between the country’s mafia criminal organizations and the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), suspecting them of possibly working together to smuggle oil into Europe. The police force has discovered quantities of […]

Iraq Special Forces, Rebuilding After Mosul Battle, Must Keep Standards High

The Iraqi Special Forces, the best troops in their military are looking to rebuild and re-arm after the nine-month bloody battle for Mosul. The joint US-Iraqi trained “Golden Division” suffered losses reportedly as high as 40 percent during the siege to oust the Islamic State fighters from the city, which was effectively razed to the ground. […]

U.S. Blackhawk helicopter goes down in hard landing in Afghanistan

Two U.S. soldiers reportedly suffered light injuries during a hard landing of a HH-60 Black Hawk helicopter in Afghanistan early on Tuesday. The helicopter suffered an unspecified mechanical failure during operations over the Achin District in eastern Afghanistan.  No statements have been made as to whether or not the helicopter had been fired upon by […]

Hezbollah takes journalists in Lebanon on a tour to prove Trump wrong

When President Trump lumped the Lebanese Hezbollah movement together with the Islamic State and al-Qaeda last week, describing Lebanon’s government as a partner in the fight against all of them, he might not have realized quite how complicated the situation in Lebanon is. So on Saturday, Hezbollah took a party of journalists on a tour that helped […]

In one Iraqi town, a visit to the first bar to reopen after Islamic State rule

This little Christian town in northern Iraq remains a sad, abandoned place more than nine months after the Islamic State was kicked out. Row upon row of houses stand burned and destroyed. The churches are vandalized and blackened with soot. Only a fraction of the population has returned. But after the first bar was reopened […]