Territory of the Islamic State
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The Islamic State (IS) had its core in Iraq and Syria from 2013 to 2017 and 2019 respectively, where the proto-state controlled significant swathes of urban, rural, and desert territory, mainly in the Mesopotamian region.[14] Today the group controls scattered pockets of land in the area, as well as territory or insurgent cells[14][16] in other areas, notably Afghanistan, West Africa, the Sahara, Somalia, Mozambique, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[17] As of 2023, large swathes of Mali have fallen under IS control.[18]
Islamic State الدولة الإسلامية ad-Dawlah al-Islāmiyah | |||||||||||||||||
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Motto: لا إله إلا الله، محمد رسول الله "Lā ʾilāha ʾillā llāh, Muhammadun rasūlu llāh" "There is no god but God; Muhammad is the messenger of God"[1] دولة الإسلام باقية وتتمدد Dawlat al Islam Baqiyah wa Tatamaddad "The Islamic State remains and expands"[1] خلافة على منهاج النبوة Khilafah ala Minhaj an-Nubuwwah "Caliphate Upon the Prophetic Methodology"[2][3] | |||||||||||||||||
Anthem:
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Seal:[5][6][7][8][9][10] | |||||||||||||||||
Status | Unrecognized proto-state Designated as a terrorist organization | ||||||||||||||||
Capital | Raqqa (2013–2017)[1] Mayadin (2017)[11] Hajin (2017–18)[12] | ||||||||||||||||
Official languages | Arabic | ||||||||||||||||
Religion | Sunni Islam (Salafism) | ||||||||||||||||
Government | Unitary Islamic theocratic self-proclaimed caliphate under a totalitarian dictatorship | ||||||||||||||||
• Caliph | Abu Hafs al-Hashimi al-Qurashi | ||||||||||||||||
• Head of the Shura Council | Abu Arkan al-Ameri | ||||||||||||||||
Legislature | Shura | ||||||||||||||||
Establishment | War on Terror | ||||||||||||||||
• Established under the name of Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad | 1999 | ||||||||||||||||
• Joined al-Qaeda | October 2004 | ||||||||||||||||
• Declaration of an Islamic State in Iraq | 13 October 2006 | ||||||||||||||||
• Claim of territory in the Levant | 8 April 2013 | ||||||||||||||||
• Separated from al-Qaeda | 3 February 2014 | ||||||||||||||||
• Declaration of caliphate | 29 June 2014 | ||||||||||||||||
10 July 2017 | |||||||||||||||||
19 March 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
27 October 2019 | |||||||||||||||||
3 February 2022 | |||||||||||||||||
Population | |||||||||||||||||
• 2015 estimate | (near max extent): 8–12 million[13][14] | ||||||||||||||||
Currency | |||||||||||||||||
Time zone | UTC+2 and +3 (EET and AST) | ||||||||||||||||
UTC+3 (EEST) | |||||||||||||||||
Driving side | right | ||||||||||||||||
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In early 2017, IS controlled approximately 45,377 square kilometers (17,520 square miles) of territory in Iraq and Syria and 7,323 km2 of territory elsewhere, for a total of 52,700 square kilometres (20,300 sq mi).[14] This represents a substantial decline from the group's territorial peak in late 2014, when it controlled between 100,000 and 110,000 square kilometres (39,000 and 42,000 sq mi)[14][19] of territory in total.[14][20] IS territory has declined substantially in almost every country since 2014, a result of the group's unpopularity and the military action taken against it.[14] By late March 2019, IS territory in Syria was reduced to only the besieged 4,000 km2 (1,550 sq mi) Syrian Desert pocket.[21] The enclave was surrounded by Syrian government forces and its allies.[22][23][21] The Syrian military conducted combing operations and airstrikes against the pocket, but with limited success.[24][25] IS propaganda claims a peak territorial extent of 282,485 km2.[26]
The majority of the Islamic State’s territory, population, revenue, and prestige came from the territory it once held in Iraq and Syria.[14] In Afghanistan, IS mostly controls territory near the Pakistan border and has lost 87% of its territory since spring 2015.[14] In Lebanon, IS also controlled some areas on its border at the height of the Syrian war. In Libya, the group operates mostly as a moving insurgent force, occupying places before abandoning them again.[27] In Egypt, the group controls 910 km2 of land centered on the village of Sheikh Zuweid, which represents less than 1% of Egypt's territory.[14] In Nigeria, Boko Haram (at the time an IS affiliate) controlled 6,041 km2 of territory at its maximum extent in 2014, though most of this area was lost amid military reversals and a split within Boko Haram between pro- and anti-IS factions.[14] By late 2019, however, IS's African forces had once again seized large areas in Nigeria;[28] as of 2021, IS's African forces still run their own administrations in territories they control.[29][30] As of 2022, most of IS's territory is confined to northeastern Nigeria and northern Mozambique, alongside large swathes of eastern Mali.[18]