Institute for the Study of War

Significant Offensives in Syria: June 6 - June 9, 2015

Jul 9, 2015 - Institute for t...

Syrian rebel factions launched long-awaited offensives against the isolated provincial capitals of Dera’a and Aleppo Cities, located in southern and northern Syria respectively. The fall of either city to rebel forces including Syrian al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra would overturn the stalemate that has long characterized the Syrian Civil War, opening the door to further offensives against core regime terrain in Damascus and the Syrian Coast.

Iraq Situation Report: July 07 - 08, 2015

Jul 8, 2015 - Sinan Adnan

ISIS continued to launch SVBIED and direct fire attacks against Haditha district in western Anbar, following a SVBIED wave that the ISF largely repelled on July 5-6.

Militant Attack and Support Zones in Afghanistan: April - July 7, 2015

Jul 7, 2015 - Institute for t...

Iraq Situation Report: July 02 - 06, 2015

Jul 6, 2015 - Sinan Adnan

ISIS intensified its attacks against the ISF and Iraqi Shi’a militias in northern and western Iraq.

Ukraine Crisis Update: July 2, 2015

Jul 2, 2015 - Hugo Spaulding

The rapid deterioration of political negotiations between the separatist “republics” and Kyiv may trigger a military escalation by the Russian-backed forces, which continue to conduct heavy indirect fire strikes against frontline Ukrainian positions.

ISIS’s Wilayat Sinai Launches Largest Offensive in Sheikh Zuweid

Jul 2, 2015 - Institute for t...

ISIS’s most complex ground assault outside Iraq and Syria to date occurred in northern Sinai on July 1, suggesting the expansion of ISIS’s ground warfare to the Near Abroad. Previously ISIS’s attacks patterns across the region had primarily featured notable spectacular attacks.

Sinai July 1, 2015 map

Jul 2, 2015 - John Lawrence

Iraq Situation Report: June 30 - July 01, 2015

Jul 1, 2015 - Sinan Adnan

Various Iraqi Shi’a militias along with the Federal Police (FP) and elite units from the ISF appear to have made advances against ISIS in Baiji.

The Threat of New Al-Qaeda Leadership: The Case of Syria's Abu Mohammed Al-Joulani

Jun 30, 2015 - Jennifer Cafarella

The death of al-Qaeda’s general manager, Nasir al-Wahayshi, will likely disrupt al-Qaeda’s global operations until he is replaced. It is likely that al-Qaeda leader Aymen al-Zawahiri will nominate his replacement according to traditional leadership patterns. It is dangerous but plausible, however, that Zawahiri will seek to maximize the influence of newer al-Qaeda leaders. One possible candidate for future al-Qaeda leadership is Abu Mohammed al-Joulani, the leader of al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra.

Iraq Situation Report: June 27 - 29, 2015

Jun 29, 2015 - Sinan Adnan

There have been unconfirmed reports of advances by the Federal Police (FP) and Iranian-backed Iraqi Shi’a militias in Baiji district amid renewed clearing operations declared by the FP.

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