Islamic State group

German police conduct raid after Cologne's main train station hostage-taking

Cologne - Dpa

German police conducted a raid on Tuesday in connection to a suspected Islamist who took a woman hostage inside Cologne's main train station pharmacy the day before. Police, who have yet to officially state whether the incident was a terrorist act and have not definitively identified the suspect, declined to name the time and place of the raid. In a..Read more

Four years and one caliphate later, IS claims Idlib comeback

Beirut - Egypt Today

The Islamic State group has been roundly defeated across much of Syria -- which made it all the more surprising when it announced an official comeback in the country's northwest last week. Syrian regime troops are currently waging a fierce assault against other jihadists and rebels in Idlib province, and in the chaos, IS appears to have gained a foothold. On January 10, IS..Read more

A new life sprouts up around Mosul

Mosul - Egypt Today

Even before the Islamic State group took over her home city of Mosul, Iraqi 31-year-old Nesrine never imagined she would have a job working late into the evening at a fashion boutique. But now, in districts of Iraq's second city not left totally devastated by the ferocious fighting to oust the jihadists, life is buzzing again -- with more vibrancy than ever...Read more

IS cells operate in Kabul under noses of Afghan and US forces

Kabul - Egypt Today

Middle-class Afghans turned jihadists have assisted the Islamic State group's expansion from its stronghold in Afghanistan's restive east to Kabul, analysts say, helping to make the capital one of the deadliest places in the country. IS has claimed nearly 20 attacks across Kabul in 18 months, with cells including students, professors and shopkeepers evading Afghan and US security forces to..Read more

Freezing New York welcomes 2018

New York - Egypt Today

Some two million people braved New York's coldest New Year weather for a century to welcome 2018 in Times Square, with police enforcing intensely strict security. Residents and tourists faced the worst New Year freeze since 1917, with temperatures of nine degrees Fahrenheit (minus 12.7 Celsius). After two attacks in the city inspired by the Islamic State group, in December..Read more

Gunman Attacks Church near Cairo, Shot Dead

Cairo - Egypt Today

A gunman opened fire on a church south of Cairo on Friday and was shot dead by policemen, police officials said. The gunman had opened fire outside the church, wounding five security guards, and tried to storm the building when police shot him dead, the officials said. A picture of the alleged gunman's corpse published on the official Al-Ahram newspaper's..Read more

IS moves with 'impunity' in Syria regime-held areas

Washington - Egypt Today

The international coalition against the Islamic State group on Wednesday accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad of allowing the jihadists to move through territory he controls "with impunity." "They seem to be moving with impunity through regime-held territory, showing that the regime is clearly either unwilling or unable to defeat Daesh within their borders," Major General Felix Gedney of the British..Read more