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Turkey is preparing to launch a new military operation in Syria that will undermine key U.S. national security interests. The Syrian Democratic Forces will be forced to de-prioritize the fight against ISIS while key oil infrastructure in Eastern Deir ez-Zour Province will be put at greater risk of targeting by the pro-Assad coalition.
ISIS has mounted low-level efforts to replenish its ranks from members held in detention facilities and displacement camps across Syria and Iraq since late 2018. ISIS is likely preparing more coordinated and sophisticated operations to free its detained members in Iraq and Syria.
Over several "Crisis Brief" podcast episodes, Jennifer Cafarella and guests explain the ongoing unrest in Iraq, the significance of protests, and the underlying political dynamics. This series also looks beyond the immediate political instability to identify the effects on key U.S. national security concerns, from the counter-ISIS fight to Iran's destabilizing role.
On Episode 2 of Overwatch, Nataliya Bugayova and Darina Regio preview the October 2019 Russia-Africa summit and unpack the scope and depth of the Russian campaign across Africa, as well as its effects on the region and U.S. interests.
Tune in Thursday, September 26 at 2:30 PM EST to watch ISW President Dr. Kimberly Kagan and her Syria Study Group colleagues discuss the situation in Syria and a way forward at a discussion event convened by the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington, D.C.
ISIS is preparing to free its loyal fighters and followers from prisons and displacement camps across Syria and Iraq following ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's September 16, 2019 statement encouraging a breakout. In one camp in Northern Syria, ISIS has been fundraising via encrypted social media channels for several months.
In a new "Russia in Review" update, Darina Regio argues that the West should recognize that treating the recent elections in Russia as a true expression of the popular will of the Russian population simply reinforces a false narrative designed to mask Vladimir Putin's dictatorship.
Overwatch is ISW's podcast series. Launched in September 2019, the series examines the national security challenges that lie ahead for the US through interviews with ISW's experts and featured guests. Listen to the episodes on your favorite podcast service!
Al Qaeda has reinvigorated its effort to unite anti-Assad groups into a single military force in northwest Syria after Russia enabled the regime of Syrian President Bashar al Assad to break a months-long stalemate in northwest Syria.
Russia has been building its campaign to expand its influence across the African continent ahead of the inaugural Africa-Russia Summit in October 2019. The campaign provides insight into the Kremlin’s potential points of vulnerability and the risk of blowback from failed influence operations.