Main events of the past week
- In the Idlib region, exchanges of artillery fire continued between the Syrian army and the forces supporting it, and the rebel forces, south and southeast of Idlib. In the desert region (Al-Badia), the epicenter of ISIS’s activity, the presence of the Syrian army and the forces supporting it has been increased, with the forces receiving Russian air support. In the Deir ez-Zor-Al-Mayadeen region, another high-ranking ISIS operative was killed this week in an airstrike by an International Coalition UAV. He had been in charge of both ISIS’s oil activity and the region east of the Euphrates River. At the same time, ISIS operatives continued to attack Kurdish SDF forces.
- Iraq: ISIS continued its activity against the Iraqi security forces, mainly in the form of sniper and machine gun fire and activating IEDs.
- Africa: ISIS carried out intensive activity this week, mainly in Nigeria. The height of ISIS’s activity was the takeover of the town of Askira in the northeast of the country for several hours. This is the southernmost point that ISIS operatives have so far taken control of in Borno State, which could indicate ISIS’s intention to spread beyond the Lake Chad region.
- This week, there was also an increase in ISIS’s attacks against the Afghan security forces, mainly in Jalalabad in the Nangarhar Province. At least seven ISIS operatives were killed in the Nangarhar Province in an operation by the Afghan security forces on February 15, 2021.
Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office: The threat posed by ISIS is growing
- At a briefing before the UN Security Council, Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office Vladimir Voronkov noted that ISIS’s threat to world security has recently increased once again and that ISIS was now working to reorganize its ranks. According to him, since mid-2020, ISIS has gained momentum in some places around the globe and has even managed to take advantage of the COVID-19 pandemic to accelerate its activity. Following are a number of topics that he addressed in the briefing (UN website, February 10, 2021)[1]:
- Presence of ISIS operatives: In Iraq and Syria, there are operatives working in small groups, moving between the two sides of the border and finding refuge in the deserts and rural areas. These operatives could pose a threat to the whole world in the long range. Voronkov also mentioned the expansion of ISIS’s activity in West Africa and warned that local residents in Europe are liable to carry out terrorist attacks.
- At the propaganda level: ISIS continues to expand its activity. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, young people around the globe are spending more time in cyberspace, and ISIS took advantage of this situation to send messages to them and recruit them to the organization.
- The humanitarian situation in the detention camps in Syria: Voronkov mentioned the deteriorating situation in the camps, and especially in the Al-Houl camp, which houses families of ISIS operatives. According to Voronkov, the international community has done too little to address the situation, noting that there is evidence of radicalization, fundraising, training and incitement in these camps. According to him, this phenomenon could have serious consequences in the future at the global level, with children at the camps becoming the next generation of ISIS operatives within a few years. He called on countries to accept the residents of these detention camps.
The Syrian arena
The Idlib region
During the week, exchanges of artillery fire continued between the rebel forces, headed by HTS, and the Syrian army and the forces supporting it, in the region of the rebel enclave in Idlib. A noteworthy incident occurred on February 13, 2021, when ground forces of the Syrian army and the forces supporting it attempted to penetrate the rebel enclave in Idlib from the southeast, but were repelled by the rebel forces (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, February 13, 2021). Russian planes fired missiles at the main prison in Idlib. No casualties were reported (Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, February 13, 2021).
The desert region (Al-Badia)
- In view of ISIS attacks in the desert region in the recent weeks, the Syrian army and the forces supporting it began to reinforce their presence in the area, availing themselves of Syrian and Russian air support mainly to locate ISIS operatives in the area (Sputnik News, February 11, 2021).
- In view of the large number of attacks carried out by ISIS against oil tankers, Syrian army helicopters reportedly escorted an Al-Qaterji oil tanker which was en route from the Kurdish region in northeastern Syria to the Deir ez-Zor Governorate. This might be a new tactic of securing the oil tankers sent to the Syrian regime (Al-Araby al-Jadeed, February 12, 2021).
- At the same time, a military source in the Syrian opposition reported that in view of the increase in ISIS’s attacks, about 400 Syrian soldiers deployed on the Deir ez-Zor-Palmyra road. According to the above source, the soldiers are equipped with antitank missiles and vehicles with medium and heavy machine guns (Al-Araby al-Jadeed, February 12, 2021).
The Deir ez-Zor-Al-Mayadeen region
- In the Deir ez-Zor-Al-Mayadeen region, ISIS continued its attacks mainly against the Kurdish SDF forces, the Syrian army, and local militias.
- Following are the main incidents:
- On February 15, 2021, an SDF intelligence operative was targeted by gunfire in the Basira area, about 15 km north of Al-Mayadeen.
- On February 13, 2021, a militiaman was taken prisoner by ISIS in the Shahil area, about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen. He was interrogated and then executed.
- On February 13, 2021, an IED was activated against an SDF vehicle in the Basira area, about 15 km north of Al-Mayadeen. An SDF commander and a fighter were killed. Six other fighters were wounded. The vehicle was destroyed.
- On February 12, 2021, an IED was activated against a vehicle about 10 km north of Deir ez-Zor. The vehicle was destroyed and its passengers were killed or wounded.
- On February 12, 2021, an SDF fighter was targeted by gunfire in Shahil, about 10 km north of Al-Mayadeen. He was wounded.
- On February 11, 2021, an SDF fighter was taken prisoner in the Jadid Akidat area, about 20 km southeast of Deir ez-Zor. He was interrogated and then executed.
- On February 11, 2021, an SDF fighter was shot at about 10 km southeast of Deir ez-Zor.
High-ranking ISIS operative killed northeast of Deir ez-Zor
- On February 14, 2021, an International Coalition UAV killed a senior ISIS operative in the Rawda region, about 50 km northeast of Deir ez-Zor. The dead operative was Abu Yassin al-Iraqi, 33, from Ramadi, Iraq. Al-Iraqi was ISIS’s official in charge of the region east of the Euphrates River and of oil in the area (AFP, February 14, 2021; Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, February 14, 2021; Syria TV, February 14, 2021; Naher Media, February 14, 2021).
Al-Raqqah region
- On February 11, 2021, according to Kurdish sources, four fighters of Asayish (the internal security forces in the Kurdish region) were killed in an ISIS attack northeast of Al-Raqqah (www.kurdistan24.net, February 11, 2021).
The Iraqi arena
Provinces of Iraq (Wikipedia)
Iraq accepted more than a hundred ISIS operatives from Syria
- According to Iraqi sources, Iraq has recently accepted more than a hundred ISIS operatives, Iraqi citizens, who were transferred to Iraq by the Kurdish SDF forces in northeastern Syria. The operatives, some of them senior ISIS figures, had been held by the SDF. They were sent to a special prison in the Nineveh Province, in northwestern Iraq (Al-Araby al-Jadeed, February 11, 2021).
ISIS operatives killed in an IED explosion
- A total of 21 ISIS operatives were killed in what seemed to be a “work accident”: a car bomb exploded among ISIS operatives while they were assembling it about 20 km northeast of Samarra (Al-Sumaria, February 13, 2021).
ISIS’s attacks in the various provinces in Iraq[2]
Diyala Province
- On February 15, 2021, an Iraqi policeman was targeted by gunfire in the Al-Waqf area, northwest of Baqubah. He was wounded.
- On February 13, 2021, an Iraqi soldier was targeted by machine gun fire north of Jalula, about 75 km northeast of Baqubah. The soldier was killed. A thermal camera was destroyed.
- On February 11, 2021, an Iraqi soldier was targeted by sniper fire in the Qulay area, west of Khanaqin. He was wounded.
- On February 9, 2021, an Iraqi soldier was targeted by machine gun fire in the Jalula area, about 75 km northeast of Baqubah.
Nineveh Province
- On February 14, 2021, an IED was activated in the house of Sa’ad Nahed al-Hamidi, a candidate for the Parliament elections in the Nimrud region, about 30 km south of Mosul. The house was damaged. It is not the first time that Iraqi political candidates are targeted by ISIS operatives.
Kirkuk Province
- On February 15, 2021, an IED was activated against an Iraqi army force in the southern Daquq area, about 70 km south of Kirkuk. One soldier was killed and several others were wounded.
- On February 11, 2021, an Iraqi police compound was targeted by machine guns south of Daquq, in southern Kirkuk. Four policemen were killed and three others were wounded.
- On February 8, 2021, an IED was activated against a group of Iraqi policemen operating in the Riyad area, about 50 km southwest of Kirkuk. Two policemen were wounded.
Salah al-Din Province
- On February 12, 2021, an IED was activated against an Iraqi army vehicle in the Tarmiyah area, about 25 km north of Baghdad. The vehicle was destroyed and the passengers on board were killed or wounded. Immediately afterwards, another IED was activated against a rescue force arriving at the scene. Several other soldiers were killed or wounded.
Counterterrorism measures in Iraq
Salah al-Din Province
- On February 12, 2021, the Iraqi government counterterrorism unit apprehended four ISIS squad members in the Salah al-Din Province (Facebook page of Iraqi Armed Forces Spokesman Yahya Rasoul, February 12, 2021).
One of the four apprehended squad members
(Facebook page of Iraqi Armed Forces Spokesman Yahya Rasoul, February 12, 2021)
- On February 11, 2021, the Iraqi Air Force carried out several airstrikes in the Hamrin Mountains, about 20 km east of Baiji, destroying several ISIS hiding places and tunnels in the area (Facebook page of Iraqi Armed Forces Spokesman Yahya Rasoul, February 11, 2021).
Kirkuk Province
- On February 12, 2021, acting on intelligence, the Iraqi government counterterrorism unit detained two ISIS operatives in the southern Kirkuk Province (Facebook page of Iraqi Armed Forces Spokesman Yahya Rasoul, February 12, 2021).
Diyala Province
- On February 15, 2021, the Iraqi Air Force attacked ISIS targets in the province. At least five ISIS operatives were reportedly killed (Military Information Office, February 16, 2021).