ISIS is Only Mostly Dead - What to Expect Next

Discovered files reveal IS plans to launch revenge attacks in Europe, Syria – reports

FILE PHOTO: A Kurdish SDF fighter fires on ISIS positions in Syria, 2015 © REUTERS / Rodi Said

SDF militia have cleaned out the last ISIS stronghold in Syria at Barghouz. Many ISIS fighters melted silently into crowds elsewhere in Syria and beyond. What will they do now? The leaders, what's left of them, have a plan, only their plan was captured by the Kurds.

As the last remnants of Islamic State’s ‘caliphate’ is dealt a severe blow on the ground, sleeper cells from the group are already planning devastating revenge attacks in Europe and Syria, recently discovered files reveal.

The documents, obtained by the Sunday Times, show that Islamic State operatives are supporting jihadists to plan fresh attacks in European cities, while sleeper cells within Syria have formed hit-squads to assassinate its enemies.

The cache was contained in a hard drive dropped by an IS sleeper cell during a firefight with local forces in the Syrian desert in February. Attesting to its authenticity, the paper said the files contained the types of meticulous detail that have become a hallmark of the group’s record keeping and bureaucracy. Lists of fighters’ names and allotted weapons were joined by budget spreadsheets and payments to fighters and their wives. Others lament the lack of availability of suicide bombers and vehicles for use as car bombs.

However, more startling are letters from a senior IS leader who goes by the name Abu Taher al-Tajiki, claiming he has fighters willing to conduct operations “far away from the Islamic State” and would be in touch with them to “carry out the operations.” To facilitate these attacks, he requests the setting up of a Bureau of Foreign Relations for the Department of Operations in Europe.

Just a couple days ago German police arrested 10 Salafist Muslims preparing for a major attack to kill lots of Germans. Whether the arrests were linked to this event or not, whoever knows is not likely to say.

Other letters addressed to group leaders in Iraq and Syria by al-Tajiki proposes the establishment of what he calls “crocodile cells,” called such to represent IS killers who hide beneath the surface before attacking. Their missions would involve “killing the enemies of God and taking their money.” Online hackers and technicians were also available for missions without the need for weapons.

Al-Tajiki had planned to present the plan to the group’s elusive head, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, but this didn’t go ahead after a go-between was killed.

News of the plans comes as the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) claimed victory over the so-called caliphate’s last remaining pockets in Syria on Saturday. The victory comes following months of efforts to oust the last remaining IS holdouts along the Euphrates.

However, the Syrian government remains skeptical of Washington’s claim that the jihadist group has been defeated militarily following several previous claims of victory over the group by US President Donald Trump. Speaking on Friday, Syria’s UN envoy warned that terrorists were hiding within the Rukban refugee camp, located in a US-protected zone near the Jordanian border.

Rukban Refugee Camp, Syria

‘Islamophobia Expert,’ Flight Attendant on Irish PM’s Jet Chose ISIS: How do Westerners Get Radicalized?

Thousands of Islamic jihadists are flooding out of Barghouz, the last enclave of ISIS in Syria. They come from many countries. Now what to do with them?

FILE PHOTO A fighter of Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) near the village of Baghouz, Syria

February 27, 2019. © Reuters / Rodi Said

As Kurdish and Syrian Democratic Forces pound the last remaining ISIS stronghold, a stream of foreign jihadists have poured out of the village of Baghouz, Syria. Who are the captured Westerners and what happens to them next?

US-backed Kurdish and SDF troops launched an all-out assault on the Syrian hamlet of Baghouz on Sunday evening, pummeling the village with airstrikes and killing "dozens" of militants overnight.

Nestled on the banks of the Euphrates near the Iraqi border, Baghouz is the last redoubt of the Islamic State, whose 'caliphate' once spanned much of Iraq and Syria.

SDF spokesman Mustafa Bali told Reuters that 4,000 IS militants in Baghouz have surrendered in the last month, and tens of thousands of their wives, children, and family members have evacuated the village. Only a dedicated few fighters remain inside, ready to defend the caliphate to the death.

Thinking they will go straight to Paradise. Boy, do they have a surprise coming.

Among the dregs emerging from Baghouz are a curious mix of Westerners who had become radicalized and made the journey to Syria to fight for IS.

The 'Islamophobia expert'

Swedish-Norwegian national Michael Skramos was captured in Baghouz by Kurdish forces last week, according to the Swedish newspaper Expressen. The 33-year-old's route to radicalization began when he converted to Islam in 2005, becoming a preacher and self-described "Islamophobia expert" at a Gothenburg mosque shortly afterwards.

Skramos packed up his wife and two children, changed his name to Abo Ibrahim Al Swedi, and headed to Syria in 2014 to join IS. There he filmed a propaganda video encouraging his fellow Swedes to follow his lead.

"The door to jihad is standing there waiting for you," he said in the 2015 video. "It's the fastest way to Jannah (paradise)."

And if you believe that, I have a tropical Island in Labrador for sale, cheap.

As things turned out, there was a Swede among Skramos' captors too. Swedish soldier Jesper Soder, fighting with the Kurdish YPG, told Expressen that Skramos was arrested along with around 50 other militants, including "many Europeans."

The Irish soldier

Irishwoman Lisa Smith, 38, was found by a British TV crew in a refugee camp in northern Syria two weeks ago, after she had fled Baghouz. Although Smith was wearing a burka, the crew noticed her Irish accent and investigated further.

You can only be invisible if you keep your mouth shut!

It turned out that she had moved to Syria in 2015 after converting to Islam in 2011. Prior to her conversion, Smith had a long career with the Irish Defense Force, serving with the army in an infantry battalion, before joining the country's Air Corps. At one point, Smith worked as a flight attendant on former Taoiseach (prime minister) Bertie Ahern's government jet.

"She was a lovely lady, always very engaged and very interested," Ahern told reporters on Sunday. "A very fine person."

Former friends told the Sun that Smith became radicalized through Facebook after a painful breakup. "She is no longer the Lisa people grew up with," one said. "She hates the West."

Crowds of Westerners

Dozens of countries are represented in the human tide leaving Baghouz. British-born Shamima Begum, who left for Syria aged 15 and was promptly married off to an IS fighter, emerged from the village last month and was found in a nearby refugee camp. Her Dutch husband was captured by SDF forces around the same time.

Begum was pregnant and begged to be repatriated to Britain before her baby was born. She wasn't; she was stripped of her British citizenship, and the baby died a few days ago.

Among the captured or surrendered IS members are Americans, British, French, Australians, Italians, and countless more. Many are now in Kurdish, SDF, or US custody, and President Donald Trump last month urged EU leaders to take back over 800 fighters held by US forces in Syria, ahead of the US pullout.

The British Home Office revoked Shamima Begum's citizenship last weekend, and Germany announced that it would strip some returning German jihadists of their citizenship. Denmark has vowed not to take back any of its IS members, while France remains undecided.

As for 'Islamophobia expert' Skramos, the Norwegian Police Security Service has said that it will likely prosecute him. Swedish terrorist researcher Magnus Ranstorp also claimed that Skramos may be handed over to US authorities, where he could face up to 30 years imprisonment.

He certainly won't get that in Norway. 30 months is unlikely there.

The Irish government, meanwhile, has extended every possible assistance to Smith. Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan said that "every effort will be made by Irish authorities to ensure she gets home." Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said that Smith may be prosecuted, but that protecting her citizenship is "the compassionate thing to do."

Because compassion is the sensible response to an insane Islamic jihadist who wants nothing more than to kill every single person who is not. Good grief!

Berghouz - somewhere on the Euphrates (in green) near the Iraqi border (solid grey line)

ISIS Syrian Capital Raqqa Hit by Uprising, Defections

200 militants are said to have switched sides and are now fighting against ISIS

© Stringer / Reuters

A popular uprising in Islamic State stronghold Raqqa reportedly resulted in dozens of deaths as militias clashed with the terrorist group’s fighters. Some 200 militants are said to have switched sides and are fighting against their former comrades.

Several local sources say the clashes in Raqqa have been escalating for several days and resulted in numerous defections from the ranks of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL, also known as Daesh, an Arabic pejorative term).

"About 200 Syrian militants of Daesh took the side of residents of Raqqa, which forced the terrorists to organize roadblocks at the entrance to the city," one source told Sputnik.

Reports of desertion have been confirmed by Alalam news and Hamrin news.

The black IS flag has been replaced

with the national flags of Syria

After heavy clashes with IS fighters on Sunday, its former members helped the locals secure at least five neighborhoods in the city, where the black IS flag has been replaced with the national flags of Syria.

According to witness reports, Raqqa citizens now control the al-Dareiyeh, al-Ramileh, al-Ferdows, al-Ajili and al-Bakri neighborhoods.

"The split within the organization occurred as a result of internal differences in their ranks, and led to armed clashes and dozens of deaths,” a source told Hamrin news.

Sources on the ground for Alalam news explained that many fighters are trying to escape Islamic State clutches as the Syrian Army and Kurdish fighters have made a number of advances around the city, and against IS positions across the country.

Of course, who wants to be on the losing side when losing means death? These are most likely men who are not radical Islamists or they would gladly be martyred to go to Paradise with their 72 virgins. Or, it could be that they are just smart enough to realize the absurdity of that concept.

"Since October of 2015, the Syrian Army has captured some 50 villages in eastern Aleppo during an offensive which halted the ISIL-imposed siege on Kuweires Airbase," the sources said.

The city of Raqqa is considered to be the Daesh capital and their major stronghold in Syria. It has been under the control of the jihadists since August 2014. Currently the Syrian Army and the Kurdish militias are carrying out offensives to liberate the city from the terrorist group.

"Furthermore, government forces have advanced along the M45-highway (Hama to Raqqa) and reached the Western side of Raqqa province. Meanwhile, Kurdish fighters of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have taken firm control of the Northern region of the Raqqa province," the sources added.

So, is this an ad-hoc event or is it the beginnings of a complete collapse of ISIS? It shouldn't take long to find out. Should ISIS collapse and go underground, would Syria turn on the YPG in an effort to re-take all of Syria? Will the Kurds relinquish the territory they have fought so long and hard to win. Will Erdogan go ballistic if the Kurds formed a new state on the border of Turkey? 

While there is some reason for measured optimism from this weekend's happenings, peace is still a long way from occurring, especially in northern Syria.