ISIS Shifting Strategy as Empire Dreams Crumble

US Central Command is holding off on official confirmation for now, but accounts on the ground appear to have confirmed the inevitable: ISIS has been routed from its de facto capital of Raqqa, Syria. 

The defeat means that the Islamic State, which once had grand plans for an expanding caliphate, no longer controls a single major city anywhere, reports Reuters. Its account sees the Raqqa development as "a potent symbol of the jihadist movement's collapsing fortunes," noting that the last ISIS flag flying over the city was taken down Tuesday by members of the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces. 

Here's a look at related coverage and developments:

  • Next for ISIS? Now that the idea of a physical empire appears to be over for the Islamic State, the New York Times talks to analysts who see a shifting strategy already underway. ISIS is "morphing back into the kind of underground insurgency it started as, when it took root among disaffected Sunni populations that were willing to tolerate, if not wholeheartedly embrace, its ultraconservative brand of Islam."
  • Toll on Raqqa: It's brutal. One human rights group estimates that only about 1% of the prewar population of 300,000 is still there, per Al Jazeera. Whole neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble by US-led airstrikes, and the city largely has no electricity or potable water. 

Read the full story on Newser.com

More From Newser

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content