History of ISIS from Foundation to Decline and Defeat
🌱 Founding of Jamaat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad
The organization was founded by Jordanian Abu Musab al-Zarqawi under the name Jamaat al-Tawhid wal-Jihad, marking the first root of what would become ISIS.
Zarqawi announced the group's affiliation with al-Qaeda and rebranded it as al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), maintaining its expansionist objectives.
💔 Death of Zarqawi and Formation of ISI
Death of Zarqawi in US airstrike led to the proclamation of the Islamic State of Iraq under Abu Omar al-Baghdadi's leadership.
Sunni tribes and Iraqis turned against the group due to its harsh treatment, resulting in significant decline in its power and influence.
👤 Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Takes Leadership
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi assumed leadership after his predecessor's death and began reorganizing the weakened group.
The group began expanding into Syria, exploiting the security vacuum and civil war to establish operations against government forces.
📢 Rebranding to ISIS and Regional Expansion
Baghdadi announced the merger with al-Nusra Front and rebranded the group as ISIS, focusing on regional territorial control.
ISIS seized Fallujah and began a series of rapid military conquests across Iraq and Syria.
👑 Proclamation of the Caliphate
ISIS captured Mosul and on June 29 proclaimed the establishment of a global Islamic caliphate led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as caliph.
The US-led coalition launched airstrikes against ISIS on August 7, 2014, following the group's attacks on Yazidi minorities.
😢 Yazidi Massacre and Ethnic Cleansing
ISIS attacked Sinjar and the Yazidi-populated Sinjar Mountains, killing hundreds and displacing tens of thousands.
ISIS reached its peak, ruling territories with about 12 million people and managing an annual budget exceeding $1 billion.
📉 Beginning of Territorial Collapse
ISIS began losing territory to Iraqi, Syrian, and coalition forces, with Mosul recaptured by July 2017.
ISIS lost 95% of its once-controlled territory by December 2017, confined to small scattered areas.
🏁 Fall of the Caliphate
Baghouz fell on March 23, 2019, marking the end of ISIS's territorial claims and the collapse of the self-declared caliphate.
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed in a US raid in northern Syria on October 26, 2019, ending his leadership of the group.
A timeline tracing ISIS's path from its foundation in 1999 to its establishment in 2004, through its expansion and territorial control in Iraq and Syria, to its military defeat and the collapse of its self-declared state between 2017 and 2019. The timeline documents the major political and military milestones that shaped the organization's trajectory.
