Islamic State

This article is about the entirety of the Islamic State organization. For the proto-state from 2014-2019, see Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Not to be confused with an Islamic state.

“”We will cast terror into the hearts of the crusaders. Their women will become widows, their children orphans, their blood will flow in the streets, and their bodies will be scattered by the winds.

— Dabiq

Islamic State (IS), also commonly known as ISIS/ISIL or Daesh, is a Jihadist terrorist organization since 1999 and proto-state since 2014 that have gained notoriety for his violent and brutal activities across the globe plus the huge amount of clay he conquered from Iraq and Syria.

ISIS wants to create a caliphate, rule over all Muslims and kill all non-Muslim people. He is known for taking international hostages and executing them if his demands are not meet, usually broadcasting it on TV. He is usually depicted with red eyes and carrying a piece of dynamite.

Islamic State uses propaganda accounts throughout the social media ( Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, etc), in order to collect possible soldiers from overseas. Many have tried to crack down on these accounts, including hacker group Anonymous.

Depictions of ISIS vary. He usually is a single entity: ball with ISIS flag. On the most infamous r/Polandball, it used to be the same, but after the non-country flags got banned, ISIS now can only be depicted as a countryball such as Iraq, Syria and Nigeria with an ISIS headband and/or dynamite.

History

When talking about the Islamic State (IS), most people only refer to the entity that Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi founded in 2014. However, in this article, the name "Islamic State" and "IS" will be used to refer to all of modern ISIS' predecessors, such as the JTJ, AQI, and ISI.

Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad

Islamic State was founded in Jordan by the criminal Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in 1999, under the name Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad (JTJ). Zarqawi was radicalized in the 1990s during his time in Afghanistan. At that time, unlike al-Qaeda's more strategic, global focus, the Islamic State emphasized extreme sectarian violence, especially against Shia Muslims, whom he saw as heretics.

Islamic State set up training camps in Herat, but they were dismantled when US invaded Afghanistan in 2001. Zarqawi escaped and moved into northern Iraq, where he found sanctuary with Islamist Kurds operating outside Saddam Hussein's control. It is possible that Zarqawi used some "small seed money" of $200,000 obtained from al-Qaeda to set up a training camp for the JTJ. The financial support from al-Qaeda came after Zarqawi was reluctant to be recruited by bin Laden.

The US invasion of Iraq in March 2003 gave IS the chaos he needed. He moved his network into Iraq and began building an insurgency, recruiting fighters from across the Arab world. Unlike other jihadists, who primarily targeted US soldiers, IS also directed horrific attacks on Shia civilians, aid workers, and diplomats, aiming to spark a sectarian civil war.

Al-Qaeda in Iraq

In 2004, IS ( Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad) formally pledged his allegiance to Osama bin Laden and rebranded his group as al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). But, tensions existed since IS' bloodthirsty focus on massacring Shia Muslims often horrified al-Qaeda's leadership, who feared it would alienate potential supporters. Still, this allowed IS to draw more recruits as well as financial and logistical support.

Note that the group never referred to themselves as "al-Qaeda in Iraq", but it was the informal and common name. They were officially named "Tanẓīm Qāʻidat al-Jihād fī Bilād al-Rāfidayn" (Organisation of Jihad's Base in Mesopotamia"). IS' attacks on civilians, Iraqi government forces, foreign diplomats and soldiers, and American convoys continued with roughly the same intensity in this era.

At the end of October 2004, IS kidnapped Japanese citizen Shosei Koda (who traveled to Iraq despite warnings not to). In an online video, IS gave Japan 48 hours to withdraw her troops from Iraq, but Japan refused to collaborate, so Koda was beheaded, his decapitated body found wrapped in the American flag.

On 14 September 2005, IS did more than a dozen bombings in Baghdad, which killed about 160 people. Al-Zarqawi declared an "all-out war" on Shiites, Iraqi troops and the Iraqi government in a statement.

In 2006, IS joined up with smaller Jihadist groups to form the Mujahideen Shura Council. The council was formed to resist efforts by America and Iraq to win over Sunni supporters of the insurgency, and also to get rid of the "rejectionists" (Shi'ites). AQI (IS) was the most prominent member of the council.

Islamic State of Iraq

In mid-October 2006, a statement was released, announcing the dissolution of the Mujahideen Shura Council. The council was replaced by the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI). A cabinet was formed, with Abu Ali al-Anbari installed as the nominal emir, while actual power was held by the Egyptian Abu Ayyub al-Masri (foreigner, al-Muhajir). The founding declaration drew not only hostile criticism from rival Iraqi jihadists, but also opposition from major jihadist figures abroad.

In early 2007, IS planned to seize power in the central and western areas of Iraq and turn it into a Sunni caliphate. He built in strength and at his height he enjoyed a significant presence in the Iraqi governorates of Al Anbar, Diyala and Baghdad, claiming Baqubah as his capital.

Amerima was supplied with a bunch more manpower during the Iraq War troop surge of 2007. ISIS was getting dozens of his high-level members captured or killed. Between July and October 2007, IS was reported to have lost his secure military bases in Al Anbar province and the Baghdad area.

After suffering heavy losses from the US–backed Sunni tribal Sahwa movements and sustained counterinsurgency operations, IS entered a period of severe decline. By 2008-2010, he had lost much of his territorial control, popular support, and leadership cadre.

In April 2010, both Abu Ayyub al-Masri and the group's nominal emir Abu Omar al-Baghdadi were killed in a joint American-Iraqi operation. Leadership then passed to Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, who began rebuilding IS through prison breaks, assassinations, and exploiting sectarian tensions created by the Shia-dominated Iraqi government under Nouri al-Maliki.

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

The outbreak of the Syrian civil war in 2011 provided IS with new opportunities. In 2013, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi announced the expansion of IS into Syria and giving IS a new name: Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). This move was rejected by al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri, who ordered ISIL to confine himself to Iraq and recognize Jabhat al-Nusra as al-Qaeda's official Syrian branch. Baghdadi refused, leading to an open split with al-Qaeda in 2014. ISIL fought not only the Syrian government, but also rival rebel and jihadist groups, using extreme violence to eliminate competitors and seize territory in eastern Syria, particularly Raqqa.

Islamic State of Iraq and Syria

In June 2014, following the rapid capture of Mosul and large swathes of northern Iraq, ISIL declared the re-establishment of the Caliphate and renamed himself as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi proclaimed himself "Caliph Ibrahim", asserting religious authority over all Muslims.

At his height in 2014-15, IS controlled millions of people across large parts of and Syria. The group established a highly centralized system of governance, including courts, taxation, propaganda, and security services, enforcing an extremely harsh interpretation of Salafi jihadism with massive human right abuses plus killings and genocide. IS's expansion triggered a global response. A US-led international coalition began airstrikes in 2014, while Iran-backed militias, Kurdish forces, and later Russia supported anti-IS operations. From 2016 onward, IS steadily lost territory, with Mosul falling in 2017 and Raqqa later the same year.

In March 2019, IS lost his last territorial stronghold at the Battle of Baghuz Fawqani, effectively ending the territorial "caliphate", though the organization continued as an insurgent and terrorist network.

Al-Hawl

Al-Hawl refugee camp in northeastern Syria became the primary detention site for tens of thousands of IS-affiliated women and children following the collapse of the caliphate. The camp has been repeatedly described as hostile and unstable, with underground IS networks enforcing ideological loyalty, intimidating residents, and carrying out killings.

Despite the territorial defeat of IS, Al-Hawl remains a symbol of the Islamic State's lingering influence and the unresolved aftermath of his rule, with problems including repatriation, deradicalization, and long-term security risks.

Beheadings

Islamic State is most famous for his videos of insurgents covered in black clothing holding a knife to behead a kneeled prisoner dressed in orange. He justifies these barbaric and repulsive acts by blaming the West (if the victim is a foreigner).

IS performs beheadings for capital punishment and propaganda purposes. The beheadings received significant worldwide media coverage and attracted widespread condemnation from both governments and 99.3% of Islamic leaders worldwide. IS beheadings peaked in 2014 and 2015, concentrated in the Levant. It steadily declined as he lost his territories. However, the practice has persisted or appeared in other regions, most notably in northern Mozambique.

Quotes

“” God's enemies from the Jews, Christians, atheists, Shiites, apostates and all of the world's infidels have dedicated their media, money, army and munitions to fight Muslims and jihadists in the State of Nineveh after they witnessed it become one of the bases of Islam and one of its minarets under the Caliphate.

— Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi

Relationships

Friends

• Boko Haram - My brutal friend in Africa!
• Khorasan Province - Loyal province spreading my message in Afghanistan and Pakistan!
• West Africa Province - Even better than Boko Haram sometimes…
• Sinai Province - Holding the line in Egypt!
• The Washington Post - Thanks for sympathizing with me! Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi did not die like a coward, indeed!
• United States Democratic Party - Thanks for defending me in Nigeria!

Frenemies

• Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb - Helped me in the Second Libyan Civil War, but that doesn't mean you aren't a heretic
• Taliban - You tolerate my presence, but you won't let me rule Afghanistan? Hypocrites.
• Türkiye - Sometimes you looked the other way… sometimes you bombed me.
• Ba'athist Syria - I hate you, but your chaos helped me grow.
• Gulf donors - Money first, denials later.

Enemies

• Shia Islam - Heretic rejectionists prepare to be SLAUGHTERED!
• Iraq & Syria - Your clay were my stronghold! ONLY IF I DIDN'T LOOSE IT ALL…
• Kurdistan - You PIGS ruined everything with American air support!
• Al-Qaeda - I thought we could be friends, BUT NOW YOU HATE ME JUST FOR KILLING MUSLIM INFIDELS?
• United States of America - Crusader drones ruined my caliphate…
• Israel - REMOVE INFIDEL!!! You ruined my plans more times than I can count…
• Iran - Safavid empire reborn, must be destroyed!
• Russia - STOP BOMBING ME!!! I'LL CAPTURE CHECHNYA AND DAGESTAN SOON!!!
• Anonymous - WHAT YOU MEAN I AM NOT MUSLIM YOU IDIOT?? STOP REPORTING MY SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS!!
• United Nations - Sanctions, resolutions, and no recognition?! I DECLARE WAR ON YOU ALL!!!!!!

How to draw

Flag of the Islamic State

Islamic State has a drawing rating of intermediate.

1. Draw a ball.
2. Fill it with black.
3. Draw a white circle in the black.
4. In the white circle, add three lines of black text: الله‎ ; رسول‎ ; محمد
5. On top of the circle, write some Arabic text in white.
6. Add red terrorist eyes and you're done.

Color Name		HEX
	Black	#000000
	White	#FFFFFF

Gallery

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