Abdullah Al-Ghadhawi is a Syrian journalist and analyst from Deir ez-Zor. He has extensively written on Syria and the Middle East, including for the Saudi newspaper Okaz and the London-based Chatham House.
After what appeared to be a lull, the Islamic State group is experiencing a resurgence in Syria even as its presence has dwindled in Iraq, its former center of gravity. Failures in U.S. policy made Syria a fertile ground for ISIS to launch attack campaigns and attract new recruits. In this Net Assessment, Abdullah al-Ghadawi examines the circumstances leading to the group’s regeneration in Syria.
Recent moves by Bashar al-Assad in the security sphere show the embattled Syrian president still has cards to play to preserve his power, despite having sacrificed much influence to Iran and Russia to secure his regime’s survival in the civil war.
The Islamic State (ISIS) is a much more potent force in Syria than it was mere months ago. It is moving around more freely, carrying out lethal attacks against its various enemies, and entering villages to warn locals against cooperating with the Kurds, the Syrian regime, or the international coalition.
Uighur transnational jihadists fighting in Syria have served as a force multiplier for insurgents there. Without a substantial intervention by the United States, Uighur fighters could gain ground in Idlib, the only Syrian province that still has a large local and foreign jihadist presence.
