In an attempt to paint a more complete picture of the Islamic State (IS), this report identifies key areas where the IS has shown strength, learning, and adaptation. This report also highlights key areas of weakness, mistake, and failure. In doing so, the reader should be well aware that this product provides such an overview with the explicit understanding that there is more to learn in each of these areas.

Nasser al-Bahri was Osama bin Laden's personal bodyguard from 1996 - 2001, when he was arrested in Yemen. In his memoir, al-Bahri recalls his own radicalization and 'pathway to jihad', going on to detail daily life in the heart of al-Qaeda at their Afghan HQ, Tarnak Farm. He describes assassinations attempts, unmasking spies, al-Qaeda's amazing arsenal and the extraordinary security measures put in place at Tarnak farm. Al-Bahri portrays the leaders and their families, as well as the group's links with the Taliban and Pakistani security services. He recounts the tensions and conflicts at the heart of the terror group as plans for the tragic events of 9/11 progressed. Al-Bahri is the only verified, senior al-Qaeda member at liberty to tell his story. He hopes that doing so will deter other young men from jihad.

"At a time when we must adapt to the changing character of conflict, this is a serious book on a serious issue that can give us the edge we need.” - General James Mattis, USMC, Ret.

Jay Sekulow, one of America’s most influential attorneys, closely examines the rise of the terrorist groups ISIS and Hamas, explains their objectives and capabilities and how, if left undefeated, their existence could unleash a genocide of historic proportions.

This is perhaps one of the clearest articles on understanding why ISIS does what it does.

For centuries, the world of Islam was in the forefront of human achievement -- the foremost military and economic power in the world, the leader in the arts and sciences of civilization. Christian Europe was seen as an outer darkness of barbarism and unbelief from which there was nothing to learn or to fear. And then everything changed. The West won victory after victory, first on the battlefield and then in the marketplace. In this elegantly written volume, Bernard Lewis, a renowned authority an Islamic affairs, examines the anguished reaction of the Islamic world as it tried to make sense of how it had been overtaken, overshadowed, and dominated by the West. In a fascinating portrait of a culture in turmoil, Lewis shows how the Middle East turned its attention to understanding European weaponry, industry, government, education, and culture. He also describes how some Middle Easterners fastened blame on a series of scapegoats, while others asked not "Who did this to us?" but rather "Where did we go wrong?"