Russia: Returning IS fighters pose national security threat

Event

Islamic State (IS) militants returning from Syria pose a significant national security threat in Russia, according to reports from Russian officials. Per a statement issued by the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) on Tuesday, December 12, such militants pose a "real threat" to Russian national security. Recently, the FSB discovered and arrested members of a suspected Central Asian terror cell that reportedly planned to carry out attacks in Moscow during New Year celebrations and surrounding the 2018 presidential election campaign ahead of election day in March. Russian security operations targeting suspected IS and other militant cells are likely to be carried out with increased frequency in the coming months amid the ongoing security threat.

Context

On November 14, the FSB announced it had arrested 69 individuals - many from Central Asia - linked to the Tablighi Jamaat group, one of the largest and most influential Sunni Islamic revivalist and missionary movements in the world.

Recent losses have left IS with very few remaining territorial claims. Remaining IS-held territory is primarily non-strategic desert lands along the Euphrates. As IS's capabilities to successfully wage insurgent warfare in Iraq and Syria wane, it is likely that the group will disseminate and continue to employ asymmetric terror tactics with greater frequency in multiple global theaters, using small cells that can operate within the group's progressively fragmenting leadership structure.

Advice

Individuals in Russia, particularly in Moscow, are advised to remain vigilant and to report any suspicious objects or behavior.