Islamic State in Iraq and Syria

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Member of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS)

Palmyra, Syria: destruction of the Temple of Baal Shamen

Al-Ramādī, Iraq: Iraqi government forces

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Government officials are erasing graffiti of Islamic State (ISIS) banner in Solo, Java, Indonesia.

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Portrait of Marie Antoinette by Jean-Francois Janinet, 1777. Color etching and engraving with gold leaf printed on two sheets, 30x13.5 in.

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Vietnam War. U.S. President Lyndon B. Johnson awards the Distinguished Service Cross to First Lieutenant Marty A. Hammer, during a visit to military personnel, Cam Ranh Bay, South Vietnam, October 26, 1966. President Johnson

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Islamic State in Iraq and Syria: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

News •

Deadly shooting leaves three officers dead in Russia's Dagestan • May 5, 2025, 4:01 AM ET (Jerusalem Post)

NIA files chargesheet against 3 linked with banned ISIS terrorist group for 2024 Srinagar grenade attack • May 4, 2025, 5:58 AM ET (The Indian Express)

Iraq detains Islamic State suspect accused of helping to incite New Orleans truck-ramming attack • Apr. 29, 2025, 3:18 PM ET (AP)

For Iraqi Christians, Pope Francis' visit was a rare moment of hope • Apr. 22, 2025, 5:45 AM ET (AP)

US to withdraw 600 troops from Syria, leaving fewer than 1,000 to help counter IS militants • Apr. 17, 2025, 7:15 PM ET (AP)

Facts

Also Known As	ISIL • al-Dawlah al-Islāmiyyah fī al-ʿIrāq wa al-Shām • ISIS • Islamic State in Iraq and Syria • Dāʿish • Islamic State • Daesh
Date	April 2013 - present
Areas Of Involvement	Islam • sharia • extremism • terrorism • suicide bombing • beheading • Sunni
Related People	Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

Photos

Member of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS)

Palmyra, Syria: destruction of the Temple of Baal Shamen

Al-Ramādī, Iraq: Iraqi government forces

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Topics

Ku Klux Klan al-Qaeda Boko Haram al-Shabaab Kurdistan Workers’ Party Red Army Faction Tamil Tigers Abu Sayyaf Group Lashkar-e-Taiba Shining Path

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Polar bear leaping among ice floes at Spitsbergen, Svalbard archipelago, Norway, the Arctic. Sea ice climate change mammal jump global warming

All 81 References in Fall Out Boy’s “We Didn’t Start the Fire,” Explained

Demystified

Government officials are erasing graffiti of Islamic State (ISIS) banner in Solo, Java, Indonesia.

Is It ISIS or ISIL?