Islamic State (ISIS)

ISIS lost its territorial caliphate in 2019 but maintains 1,500-3,000 fighters conducting insurgency operations. - Conducting insurgency operations in Syria and Iraq

On December 13, 2025, a Syrian security officer allegedly affiliated with ISIS opened fire on US troops near Palmyra, killing two Iowa National Guard members—Staff Sgts. Edgar Brian Torres-Tovar and William Nathaniel Howard—and a civilian interpreter, Ayad Mansoor Sakat. Six days later, the US unleashed Operation Hawkeye Strike, with 100 precision munitions hitting 70 ISIS targets across central Syria using fighter jets, attack helicopters, and artillery; Jordan sent F-16s. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called it "a declaration of vengeance."

Updated Feb 5

The jihadist group that once ruled territory the size of Britain, now reduced to guerrilla warfare. - Regrouping in Syria's desert badlands after losing territorial control in 2019

A lone ISIS gunman killed two Iowa National Guardsmen and a civilian interpreter in Palmyra, Syria, on December 13, 2025—the first American combat deaths since dictator Bashar al-Assad fled the country a year earlier. Six days later, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth launched Operation Hawkeye Strike: F-15s, A-10s, Apache helicopters, and HIMARS artillery hammering 70 ISIS targets across central Syria with over 100 precision munitions. Jordan sent fighter jets. Trump called it vengeance. Then U.S. forces kept hunting—11 more raids between December 20-29 killed or captured 25 ISIS operatives and destroyed four weapons caches.

Updated Dec 31, 2025

ISIS survives by exploiting governance gaps and proving it can still kill, even after territorial defeat. - ISIS has not claimed the Palmyra insider shooting, but reporting said it claimed subsequent attacks on Syrian security forces after the U.S. retaliation.

In the first post-strike readout of “Operation Hawkeye Strike,” Jordan confirmed its air force flew alongside U.S. forces in the retaliatory package that hit 70+ ISIS targets across central Syria. While CENTCOM has not released a formal casualty count, multiple reports citing the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and AFP put ISIS losses at at least five, including a cell leader tied to drone activity in the east.

Updated Dec 21, 2025