Caliphate

The so-called Islamic State has suffered a series of setbacks in recent months, with key cities being retaken and the territory they are active in reducing in size greatly. Although scores of foreign fighters have been returning to their home countries, there remains a significant number of supporters still residing in the shrinking “caliphate”.

On Aug. 29, the Treasury Department announced that a senior Islamic State official, Salim Mustafa Muhammad al-Mansur, had been added to the US government’s list of specially designated global terrorists.

An elite team of US commandos killed a senior leader of ISIS this week.

According to the ABC News, the alleged finance chief of ISIS, Abu Anas al-Iraqi was killed Sunday in an operation in Syria by the U.S. Expeditionary Targeting Force.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on Jan. 2 claimed the deadly nightclub attack in Istanbul targeting New Year's revelers, which left 39 dead and 65 wounded, Reuters has reported.

The Islamic State (IS) group says it carried out an attack that killed 39 and left dozens wounded during New Year celebrations in Istanbul.

In a statement quoted by international media, it says the raid was part of "the blessed operations that Islamic State is conducting against the protector of the cross, Turkey".

A man in Istanbul's Üsküdar has made an announcement from a municipal vehicle, urging people to choose their own caliph and unite under Islam, main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) deputy Aykut Erdoğdu tweeted on Dec. 14, sharing video of the incident.

It is to everyone's benefit that rumors that have not been filtered through the intellect are open to scrutiny by "intellect and knowledge." 

A 16-year old Danish girl was planning to carry out terrorist attacks against two schools, one of which was Jewish, Danish police reported. The girl, whose name has not been released by the authorities recently converted to Islam and planned to plant bombs with her 24 year old accomplice.

Thousands of supporters of the Islamist Hizb ut-Tahrir organization gathered in Ankara to discuss the re-establishment of the caliphate, just three days after holding an international conference in Istanbul to mark the 92nd year of the institution's abolition, daily Cumhuriyet has reported. 

The so-called "Islamic State" of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL, is known not only for its wanton violence but also its slick videos.