By KAREN YOURISH, DEREK WATKINS and TOM GIRATIKANON
JUNE 17, 2015
Major events: Attacks directed by/linked to ISIS Attacks inspired by ISIS Arrests of suspected ISIS militants or supporters
The arrest on Saturday of a Queens college student on charges of conspiring with the Islamic State is just the most recent example of the group’s global strategy, which began about one year ago and has resulted in attacks or arrests in more than a dozen countries.
Late last June, the group, also known as ISIS or ISIL, declared a caliphate, or Islamic state, on the territory it controlled — and started to focus on three parallel tracks:
inciting regional conflict with attacks in Iraq and Syria;
building relationships with jihadist groups that can carry out military operations across the Middle East and North Africa;
and inspiring, and sometimes helping, ISIS sympathizers to conduct attacks in the West.
“The goal,” said Harleen Gambhir, an analyst at the Institute for the Study of War, “is that through these regional affiliates and through efforts to create chaos in the wider world, the organization will be able to expand, and perhaps incite a global apocalyptic war.”
Beginning last fall, ISIS made repeated calls for attacks on the West, especially to followers in countries taking part in the American-led airstrike campaign in Iraq and Syria. So-called lone wolves have responded to these calls with relatively low-tech assaults — shootings, hostage takings, hit-and-runs — that tend to get a lot of attention.
The Queens man was arrested after a monthslong investigation found that he was planning to attack various New York City landmarks on behalf of the Islamic State, according to the authorities.
“Al Qaeda always wanted to do spectacular attacks, but ISIS has reversed it,” said Patrick M. Skinner, a former C.I.A. operations officer now with the Soufan Group. “They don’t do spectacular attacks. They do attacks that generate spectacular reaction.”
ISIS Declares Provinces Across the Region
SYRIA
AFGH.
IRAQ
LIBYA
PAKISTAN
ALGERIA
SAUDI
ARABIA
EGYPT
YEMEN
NIGERIA
Countries where ISIS
has declared provinces
ISIS activity across the Middle East and North Africa has also surged. The group declared official provinces — or wilayat — in areas of Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Yemen that had networks loyal to ISIS, many of which have adopted the organization’s signature brutality.
It is an “open question” to what extent the core leadership of ISIS is communicating with its affiliates, Mr. Skinner said. While ISIS is providing support to some groups, there is no hard evidence that it is able to direct the activities of a regional wilayat as part of a cohesive campaign.
But Ms. Gambhir noted that a recent rocket attack on a multinational force in the Sinai Peninsula of Egypt may be a sign that ISIS is seeing its abilities mature. The attack could be seen as part of a larger strategy to fracture the American-led airstrike coalition.
“We haven’t assessed yet if that’s an intentional orchestration by ISIS,” Ms. Gambhir said. “We're on heightened alert to look for things like that because it would indicate a new level of capability for the organization.”
Major ISIS Attacks and Arrests Since Last Summer
Attacks directed by/linked to ISIS Attacks inspired by ISIS Arrests of suspected ISIS militants or supporters
Descriptions of the Major Attacks and Arrests
DateLocationDetailsJune 17, 2015
Yemen An ISIS branch claimed responsibilty for a series of car bombings in Sana, the capital, that killed at least 30 people.
June 13
New York A college student in Queens was charged with conspiring to support a foreign terrorist organization after an investigation found he was planning to attack various New York City landmarks on behalf of ISIS.
June 11
Massachusetts Two men were charged in Boston with conspiring to help ISIS. A third man was fatally shot the previous week by law enforcement officials who said he had threatened them with a large knife.
June 9
Egypt ISIS's Sinai province claimed responsibility for firing rockets toward an air base used by an international peacekeeping force.
June 3
Afghanistan ISIS is suspected of beheading 10 members of the Taliban.
May 31
Libya A suicide bomber from an ISIS affiliate killed at least four Libyan fighters at a checkpoint.
May 29
Saudi Arabia One week after a similar attack in the same region, a suicide bomber dressed in women’s clothing detonated an explosive belt near the entrance to a Shiite mosque, killing three people.
May 22
Yemen ISIS claimed responsibility for a bomb attack on a Shiite mosque that injured at least 13 worshipers.
May 22
Saudi Arabia In what appeared to be ISIS's first official claim of an attack in Saudi Arabia, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive at a Shiite mosque during midday prayer, killing at least 21 and injuring 120.
May 3
Texas Two men who reportedly supported ISIS and were later acknowledged by ISIS as "soldiers of the caliphate" opened fire in a Dallas suburb outside a Prophet Muhammad cartoon contest.
April 30
Yemen One of ISIS's Yemen affiliates released a video showing the killing of 15 Yemeni soldiers.
April 28
Saudi Arabia Saudi authorities announced they had arrested 65 people accused of forming a terrorist organization related to ISIS.
April 26
Malaysia Malaysian authorities arrested 12 men charged with plotting attacks in greater Kuala Lumpur.
April 19
Libya ISIS released a video of militants from two of its Libya affiliates killing dozens of Ethiopian Christians, some by beheading and others by shooting.
April 19
Minnesota Six young men from the Somali-American community in Minneapolis werearrested in connection with a plot to join ISIS.
April 18
Australia The Australian police arrested five men who they said were inspired by ISIS and planning terrorist attacks.
April 13
Morocco Moroccan authorities arrested five members of an ISIS-linked cell who were allegedly planning an attack in the Netherlands.
April 12
Libya ISIS's Tripoli affiliate claimed credit for a bomb that exploded outside the Moroccan Embassy.
April 12
Egypt ISIS militants killed at least 12 people in three separate attacks on Egyptian security forces.
April 12
Libya ISIS's Tripoli affiliate claimed responsibility for an attack on the South Korean Embassy that killed two local police officers.
April 8
Saudi Arabia Gunmen opened fire on a police patrol, killing two officers.
April 5
Malaysia Malaysian authorities arrested 17 alleged ISIS supporters suspected of planning attacks in Kuala Lumpur.
April 5
Libya ISIS killed at least four people in an attack on a security checkpoint.
April 4
Afghanistan The Afghan vice president accused ISIS of kidnapping 31 civilians in February.
April 2
March 26
Illinois Federal authorities arrested an Army National Guardsman who they say tried to travel to Libya to fight on behalf of ISIS and was helping his cousin plot an attack on an American military base.
March 22
Morocco Moroccan authorities arrested 13 people in nine cities linked to ISIS.
March 20
Yemen An ISIS affiliate claimed responsibility for coordinated suicide strikes on Zaydi Shiite mosques that killed more than 130 people during Friday Prayer.
March 20
Tunisia Tunisian authorities intercepted an ISIS cell that planned to set off car bombsin multiple cities across the country.
March 18
Tunisia ISIS claimed responsibility for an attack on a museum that killed 22 people, almost all European tourists.
March 17
New Jersey An Air Force veteran recently fired from his job as an airplane mechanic was charged with trying to support ISIS by seeking to join the group.
March 13
Saudi Arabia Saudi authorities detained two people allegedly planning an attack on the U.S. Embassy in Riyadh.
Feb. 25
New York Two men living in Brooklyn were charged with plotting to fight for ISIS. A third was charged with helping organize and fund their activities.
Feb. 20
Libya ISIS's Derna affiliate claimed responsibility for three car bombs that killed at least 40 people.
Feb. 15
Libya ISIS released a video that appeared to show its militants in Libya beheading a group of Egyptian Christians who had been kidnapped in January.
Feb. 15
Denmark A Danish-born gunman who was inspired by ISIS went on a violent rampage in Copenhagen, killing two strangers and wounding five police officers.
Feb. 3
France French counterterrorism officers arrested eight people in the northern suburbs of Paris and in the area of the city of Lyon suspected of being part of a networkrecruiting people to fight in Syria.
Feb. 3
Libya ISIS militants were suspected of killing 12 people, including four foreigners, in an attack on an oil field.
Jan. 29
Egypt ISIS's Sinai affiliate claimed responsibility for coordinated bombings that killed 24 soldiers, six police officers and 14 civilians.
Jan. 27
Libya ISIS's Tripoli affiliate claimed credit for an armed assault on a luxury hotelthat killed at least eight people. It was the deadliest attack on Western interests in Libya since the assault on the American diplomatic mission in Benghazi.
Jan. 24
Spain The police arrested four men in Ceuta, a Spanish territory bordering Morocco, who were suspected of belonging to an ISIS cell and may have been planning an attack in Spain.
Jan. 23
Lebanon ISIS attacked an outpost of the Lebanese Armed Forces.
Jan. 20
France The counterterrorism police raided the southern town of Lunel and arrested five people suspected of being part of a group that had been recruiting people to join militants fighting in Syria.
Jan. 19
Bangladesh Bangladeshi authorities arrested four people who said they were with ISIS andwanted to form a caliphate and attack the government.
Jan. 18
Israel Court documents revealed that eight Arab citizens of Israel were charged withsupporting and trying to join ISIS.
Jan. 16
Germany Police officers in Berlin raided 12 locations to detain five Turks — three of whom were later released — on suspicion of recruiting, financing and helping Turkish and Chechen fighters get to Syria.
Jan. 15
Belgium The Belgian police conducted a dozen raids across the country to prevent "imminent" attacks. Officers killed two men they said were part of an ISIS cell after coming under fire during a raid in Verviers.
Jan. 14
Ohio A Cincinnati man was charged with a plot to attack the U.S. Capitol. In May, the Justice Department charged him with the additional crime of trying to provide material support to ISIS.
Jan. 13
Morocco Moroccan authorities arrested dozens of individuals for supporting ISIS or operating ISIS recruitment cells.
Jan. 12
Jan. 11
France A video surfaced of Amedy Coulibaly, one of three gunmen who attacked the newspaper Charlie Hebdo, declaring allegiance to ISIS.
Dec 15, 2014
Australia A gunman who said he was acting on ISIS's behalf seized 17 hostages in a Sydney cafe.
Nov. 22
Saudi Arabia A Danish executive was shot in his car. A group of ISIS supporters later claimed responsibility.
November
West Bank Israeli security services broke up a Palestinian cell identified with the Islamic State in the West Bank city of Hebron.
Oct 23
New York A hatchet-wielding man charged at four police officers in Queens. ISIS said the attack was the “direct result" of its September call to action.
Oct 22
Canada An Islamic convert shot and killed a soldier who was guarding the National War Memorial in Ottawa, stormed Canada's parliament and fired multiple times before being shot and killed.
Oct 20
Canada A 25-year-old man who had recently adopted radical Islam ran over two soldiers near Montreal, killing one.
Sept. 24
Algeria Militants kidnapped and beheaded a French tourist shortly after the Islamic State called on supporters around the world to harm Europeans in retaliation for airstrikes in Iraq and Syria.
Sept. 23
Australia An 18-year-old ISIS sympathizer was shot dead after stabbing two counterterrorism officers outside a Melbourne police station.
Sept. 18
Australia A man arrested during a series of counterterrorism raids was charged with conspiring with an ISIS group leader in Syria to behead a random person in Sydney.
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