​​​​​​​UN's report: Despite death of leader of ISIS,  organization still possesses enormous strength

 Two days after the killing of an ISIS mercenary leader in northwest Syria, a United Nations report says ISIS has not been defeated at all, as there is still an active force in Iraq and Syria, with a growing presence in Afghanistan and West Africa, according to a United Nations analysis received by CNN.  American.

 The report - compiled by UN experts on ISIS and al-Qaeda and covering the last six months of 2021 - says ISIS may still have as much as $50 million in its coffers.

 According to the UN experts, “ISIS has lost many important members of its senior leadership. However, the group remains an ongoing threat,” and the report concluded that instability in both Iraq and Syria “suggests that the eventual resurgence of ISIS cannot be ruled out.”

 In their assessment of the situation in Iraq and Syria, the report says that ISIS mercenaries "are estimated to maintain between 6,000 and 10,000 fighters in both countries, forming cells and training operatives to launch attacks," often using desert hideouts.

 The report says that ISIS "developed into a primarily rural insurgency, in the face of continued counter-terrorism pressure" from forces in Iraq and Syria, which include US forces deployed in northern Syria as well as the Syrian Democratic Forces.

 The UN analysis says that in the second half of 2021, ISIS continued to "launch its attacks at a steady rate, including hit-and-run operations, ambushes and roadside bombs", particularly in a patch of land north of Baghdad.  It adds that "the cells in Iraq are also focusing on the economic war, targeting infrastructure, especially power lines."

 United Nations monitors estimate that ISIS is also rebuilding in far western Iraq, including "strongholds and tunnels with many sleeper cells and hundreds of fighters in the Anbar desert."

 In a wide-ranging document, UN monitors also say there is no evidence that the Taliban are trying to limit the activities of foreign terrorists in Afghanistan.  On the contrary, they add, "terrorist groups are enjoying more freedom there than at any time in modern history."

 The report says that ISIS-K "has demonstrated a continuing ability to conduct sophisticated attacks, further complicating the security situation in Afghanistan."

 UN member states estimate that the strength of ISIS-K has now risen from previous estimates of 2,200 to nearly 4,000, after the release of several thousand prisoners.  One member state estimated that up to half of ISIS in Khorasan is made up of foreign terrorist fighters.

 The UN team says that after six months of Taliban rule, "Afghanistan has the potential to become a safe haven for al-Qaeda and a number of terrorist groups with ties to Central Asia and beyond."  He notes that some "closest al-Qaeda sympathizers within the Taliban are now occupying senior positions in the new Afghan de facto administration", and confirms the return of a former top aide to late al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden to Afghanistan.

 The report says that terrorist groups in Central Asia such as the Islamic Jihad and the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan "are now witnessing greater freedom of movement in the country."

 In their section on jihadist activity in Africa, the United Nations observers noted that "al-Qaeda and ISIS in West Africa appear to have made decisive progress by exploiting local grievances."

 Looking ahead, the report raises the specter of a new generation of terrorists emerging from refugee camps in northern Syria.  One such camp, al-Hol, which holds about 60,000 people, is estimated by the United Nations report to be under the “social control of ISIS.”

 The UN experts concluded that "a generation of children, many of whom grew up in the incubators of violent extremism, are particularly at risk."

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