Islamic State & Predecessor Groups
This is the gateway to resources, research, and analysis the Combating Terrorism Center has produced over the last decade about the Islamic State, also referred to as the Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) and Da`ish, and its predecessor groups (al-Tawhid wa-al-Jihad, al-Qa`ida in Mesopotamia (AQI), Majlis Shura al-Mujahidin, Hilf al-Muttayibin and the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI)).
Additional CTC research and analysis about factors shaping the conflict in Iraq and Syria is also included. These resources contextualize the development of the Islamic State. Resources are organized into five categories: major reports, CTC Sentinel articles, CTC Perspectives, CTC commentary about the early development of AQI, and declassified primary sources produced by AQI, ISI, and other militant groups in Iraq.
Sentinel Articles
October 28, 2026
Bridging Warning and Response: Lessons from the Berlin Pride Attack for German and European Counterterrorism
April 28, 2026
The Collapse of Indefinite Detention in Northeast Syria: Implications Seven Years Later for Syria and Beyond
March 25, 2026
The Bondi Attack: The Islamic State’s Strategic Shifts and Jihadi Tactics in Australia
February 19, 2026
Crime and Punishment: How International Cooperation Led to the Landmark Conviction of Two Islamic State Brothers in Portugal
February 28, 2025
Teenage Terrorists and the Digital Ecosystem of the Islamic State
January 31, 2025
The August 2024 Taylor Swift Vienna Concert Plot
August 13, 2024
