The Return of the Taliban

​August 28, 2021

MENA Research Senior Analyst ​​​

The killing of the leader of the Islamic State (ISIS/Da'esh) does not mean that ISIS is over, the organization will remain a constant threat and we will soon see another ISIS leader.

The leader of the Islamic State, Amir Muhammad Sa’id Abdal-Rahman al-Salbi, widely known as Abu Ibrahim al-Hashimi al-Qurayshi, kept himself shrouded in mystery for over two years as the "caliph of the group." There are often no public photos of him, he has never appeared in public or in ISIS videos and rarely released audio recordings. His influence and daily involvement in the group's operations are unknown, and there is no known successor.

From his hideout, he led the organization as they regrouped after the fall of their caliphate and went underground to lead the insurgency in Syria and Iraq.

The evidence of a resurgence of ISIS is increasing and cannot be rulled out. Sophisticated attacks recently show that sleeper cells are re-emerging as a more serious threat, including the recent ISIS attack to free former ISIS prisoners in Hasakah in northeastern Syria, which killed almost 500 people, including children.

Al-Qurayshi killed himself and his family after detonating a bomb during a US raid in the rebel province of Idlib in northwest Syria in a house he had rented just 15 miles (24 kilometres) from the safehouse where his predecessor, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was hunted down by the US in a similar raid in October 2019.

It is thus hard to understand that they decide to blow themselves up and kill their children and their wife despite the call of the American forces to surrender.

Killing their leader may slow down the group's momentum in the short term. However, it is unlikely to have a long-term effect on its operations and they will continue no matter who the new leader is.

It is an organization that values ideas over charismatic leadership, which is why its senior leaders have kept a low profile.

Ideology is ISIS's greatest asset, and its group’s remnants choose to die for the cause.

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by Hamzeh Abu Nowar


Hamzeh Abu Nowar is a senior research analyst for HMSC. Covering the MENA region. He has conducted research on political violence, extremism and international conflict in the MENA region.


​​February 10, 2022

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ISIS's caliph is killed, the organization

remained alive 


The Return of the Taliban

​August 28, 2021