Isis has a new 'Caliph', the third: Abu Hasan al-Hashemi al-Qurashi succeeds Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Qurashi, who blew himself up during a US blitz in Syria last February 3.
The announcement by the group's spokesperson, Abu Omar al-Muhajir, came with an audio message posted by the official network to Furqan media.
Little or nothing is known about the new leader. Meanwhile, despite the defeats, Isis has returned to shed blood in Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan, and observers are worried about the economic crisis caused by the war in Ukraine which could reopen space for Isis also in Iraq.
In Syria, the terrorist group - opposed by the Russian air force - continues to sign ambushes, attacks and targeted assassinations. In the latest attack on Palmyra, at least 15 Syrian government soldiers were killed in an ambush in the desert area around the city.
Hundreds of militiamen managed to escape after the battle of Ghweiran prison, in northeastern Syria, returning operational on the ground or in other cases, according to some sources, managing to infiltrate areas controlled by Turkey, one of the organization's many sworn enemies .
The theater that arouses the greatest concerns of analysts is the Afghan-Pakistani one. Former NATO ambassador to Afghanistan, Stefano Pontecorvo, reported that ISIS ranks are swelling also thanks to former members of the Afghan security forces, while intelligence reports estimate that the organization's fighters have doubled, coming to count up to 4 thousand operative.
(Unioneonline / L)
