In August, ISIS fighters carried out more than 35 attacks and killed at least 76 pro-Assad regime fighters across Syria in the Homs, Deir Ez Zor, Raqqa, Hama, and Aleppo governorates. Since losing its territory in Syria, ISIS has shifted its strategy...
The Counter Extremism Project (CEP) reports weekly on the methods used by extremists to exploit the Internet and social media platforms to recruit followers and incite violence. Last week, ISIS released a new propaganda video titled “The Epic Battles...
Following a lull in the second half of April, ISIS attacks increased in both quantity and geographic diversity during May. This boost in activity coincided with increasingly persistent and widespread anti-ISIS operations conducted by the Syrian...
Several days after the June 29, 2014, declaration of a caliphate spanning large areas of eastern Syria and western Iraq, ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivered his first sermon as "Caliph Ibrahim" from the pulpit of al-Nuri mosque in Mosul. Three...
Following serious riots at a Kurdish demonstration in Dortmund, terrorism expert [CEP Senior Director] Hans-Jakob Schindler warns against importing the Syrian conflict to Germany. Schindler also fears an uncontrolled return of German IS fighters from Syria.
Terrorism expert Hans-Jakob Schindler of the transatlantic think tank Counter Extremism Project says that the interim president relies on foreign jihadists to stabilize his rule and does not want to appear within the Islamist spectrum as someone who betrays former comrades-in-arms.
Although the United States, under all administrations, has continued to conduct attacks against ISIS positions, the recent killing of the three Americans in Syria explains the intensification of U.S. operations. “It’s essentially about showing ISIS that if it carries out attacks against American interests, it must understand that there will be very serious consequences,” comments Hans-Jakob Schindler, director of the Counter Extremism Project in Berlin.
Presentation: Iva Mrvovà
Reporter and Researcher
On November 18, 2025, CEP hosted a webinar where Sofia Koller, Senior Research Analyst at CEP Germany, and Iva Mrvová, reporter and researcher with extensive field experience in Northeastern Syria, presented key insights from their policy paper, "A Lawless Space – Alleged ISIS-affiliated Men and Boys from Germany detained in Northeastern Syria."
This CEP policy paper serves as a starting point for a discussion on the current situation of foreign men and boys detained in Northeastern Syria, the importance of safeguarding human rights while countering terrorism, and ways forward in view of the current security and political situation in Syria.
Access the paper here: https://counterextre.me/ALawlessSpace
Introductory Remarks: Prof. Ben Saul
United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Counter Terrorism, Challis Chair of International Law, The University of Sydney
On November 18, 2025, CEP hosted a webinar where Sofia Koller, Senior Research Analyst at CEP Germany, and Iva Mrvová, reporter and researcher with extensive field experience in Northeastern Syria, presented key insights from their policy paper, "A Lawless Space – Alleged ISIS-affiliated Men and Boys from Germany detained in Northeastern Syria."
This CEP policy paper serves as a starting point for a discussion on the current situation of foreign men and boys detained in Northeastern Syria, the importance of safeguarding human rights while countering terrorism, and ways forward in view of the current security and political situation in Syria.
Access the paper here: https://counterextre.me/ALawlessSpace
Presentation: Sofia Koller
Senior Research Analyst, CEP
On November 18, 2025, CEP hosted a webinar where Sofia Koller, Senior Research Analyst at CEP Germany, and Iva Mrvová, reporter and researcher with extensive field experience in Northeastern Syria, presented key insights from their policy paper, "A Lawless Space – Alleged ISIS-affiliated Men and Boys from Germany detained in Northeastern Syria."
This CEP policy paper serves as a starting point for a discussion on the current situation of foreign men and boys detained in Northeastern Syria, the importance of safeguarding human rights while countering terrorism, and ways forward in view of the current security and political situation in Syria.
Access the paper here: https://counterextre.me/ALawlessSpace
Get the latest news on extremism and counter-extremism delivered to your inbox.