ISIS on the defensive according to UN report

ISIS Territory through the years (photo: ISIL/wikipedia.com)

According to a UN report released Monday, terrorist group Islamic State is currently on the defensive as revenue sources of the group have dropped, and are also experiencing a decline in having new recruits. In the report, IS finances are on the decline, citing a massive decrease in their illegal oil sales from $500 million in 2015 to $260 million last year.

However the report also indicate that ISIL is militarily on the defensive in several regions notably in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and the Syrian Arab Republic and they are currently operating on a “crisis budget”.

Nevertheless, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned that despite the report, the terrorist group still continues to pose threat as they are reported to have been “partially adapting” to losses especially on noted conflict areas.

The report encouraged governments to stay alert as the jihadists will undoubtedly find a new source of revenue and look out for journalists, aid workers and volunteers as they are potential targets for kidnapping for ransom.

The organization’s recruitment scheme of harboring foreign fighters has also sought a decline as countries took more security protocols to bar their citizens from leaving the country. The group has been experiencing  “diminished attractiveness”.

It has been confirmed that they are now moving to other ways of continuously encouraging recruits with the use of the dark web, encryption  and messages.

The Security Council will meet on Tuesday to further discuss the report as US President Donald Trumphas ordered the military to come up with a new strategy to defeat the terror group.