INTERNACIONAL
ISIS exploiting Syria’s chaos as US strikes expose growing threat
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U.S. and partner forces killed or captured nearly 25 Islamic State operatives in Syria in the days following a large-scale U.S.-led strike on Dec. 19, according to a new statement from U.S. Central Command, underscoring Washington’s assessment that ISIS remains an active and persistent threat inside the country.
CENTCOM said those forces conducted 11 follow-on missions between Dec. 20 and Dec. 29, killing at least seven ISIS members, capturing the remainder, and eliminating four ISIS weapons caches. The operations followed Operation Hawkeye Strike, when U.S. and Jordanian forces hit more than 70 ISIS targets across central Syria using over 100 precision munitions, destroying infrastructure and weapons sites linked to the group.
«We will not relent,» CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper said, adding that U.S. forces remain «steadfast» in working with regional partners to dismantle ISIS networks that pose a threat to U.S. and regional security.
The scope of the follow-on raids highlights a reality U.S. commanders and analysts have been warning about for months: ISIS no longer controls large swaths of territory, but it retains the ability to organize, strike and regenerate inside Syria’s fragmented security landscape.
SYRIANS MARK FIRST YEAR SINCE ASSAD’S FALL AS US SIGNALS NEW ERA IN RELATIONS
U.S. Army soldiers prepare to go out on patrol from a remote combat outpost on May 25, 2021, in northeastern Syria. U.S. forces, part of Task Force WARCLUB operate from combat outposts in the area, coordinating with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in combatting residual ISIS extremists and deterring pro-Iranian militia. (John Moore/Getty Images)
Syria remains divided among competing forces, militias and foreign-backed armed groups, with no single authority exercising full control over large parts of the country. Analysts say that vacuum continues to provide space for ISIS cells to operate quietly, recruit and exploit overstretched local forces.
Analysts note that Syria’s security environment remains shaped by former jihadist networks that were never fully demobilized after the war. The country’s transitional leadership, including President Ahmed al-Sharaa, emerged from armed Islamist factions that relied heavily on foreign fighters and militias, according to regional security assessments. While those groups are not synonymous with ISIS, experts say the incomplete dismantling of extremist networks has left gaps that ISIS cells continue to exploit.
«ISIS today doesn’t need a caliphate to be dangerous,» said Bill Roggio, told Fox News Digital. «We’ve always been quick to declare terrorist organizations defeated and insignificant, and that couldn’t be further from the truth.»
Roggio said the group has adapted rather than disappeared, shifting away from holding territory toward smaller, more covert cells capable of carrying out lethal attacks. He pointed to ongoing ISIS activity not only in Syria and Iraq, but also in Afghanistan and other regions, citing United Nations reporting that estimates roughly 2,000 ISIS fighters remain active in Afghanistan alone.
«That’s not what a defeated group looks like,» Roggio said, noting that ISIS continues to recruit, indoctrinate and inspire attacks even without the visibility it once had.
FROM SYRIA TO SOMALIA, US TROOPS REMAIN DEPLOYED THIS HOLIDAY SEASON UNDER MISSIONS THAT NEVER FORMALLY ENDED
ISIS terrorists in Syria. (Reuters)
One of the most sensitive vulnerabilities remains the network of detention facilities in northeastern Syria holding thousands of ISIS terrorists and supporters. Those prisons are guarded primarily by Kurdish-led forces backed by a small U.S. military presence, estimated at roughly 1,000 troops, according to Reuters.
U.S. and coalition officials have repeatedly warned that any major disruption to prison security could allow hardened ISIS operatives to escape and reconstitute networks across Syria and beyond. Kurdish officials have also raised concerns about funding shortages, manpower strain and pressure from rival militias operating nearby.
While U.S. officials have not publicly linked the recent strikes to prison-related threats, analysts say the broader environment of fragmented control increases the risk of coordinated attacks, insider assistance or prison unrest.
The danger is not theoretical. ISIS has previously staged mass prison break operations in Syria and Iraq, including a 2022 assault on the al-Sinaa prison in Hasakah that required days of fighting to contain.
The U.S. strikes also come amid continued instability inside Syria, where multiple armed actors operate with overlapping authority. Analysts note that clashes among militias, sectarian violence and unresolved command structures have weakened overall security and diverted attention from counterterrorism efforts.
US, SYRIAN TROOPS COME UNDER FIRE WHILE ON PATROL: REPORT
U.S. soldiers attached to the Iowa National Guard sign GBU-31 munitions systems in the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility Dec. 18, 2025 as the U.S. military launched large-scale strikes against dozens of Islamic State targets in Syria in retaliation for an attack on U.S. personnel, U.S. officials said. (Air Force Photo/Handout via Reuters)
Bombings in neighborhoods of Damascus, including Mezzeh, and unrest in minority areas have further illustrated the gaps ISIS and other extremist groups can exploit, according to regional security assessments and open-source reporting.
«Syria’s chaos is the accelerant,» Roggio said. «ISIS thrives where no one is fully in charge.»
U.S. officials and analysts stress that ISIS activity in Syria is part of a wider pattern rather than an isolated flare-up.
Sources in the Israeli Mossad told Fox News Digital of continued ISIS-linked activity across multiple theaters, including recruitment networks and small-scale attacks designed to test security responses and maintain operational relevance.
In Turkey, security forces recently clashed with Islamic State militants during counterterrorism operations, wounding several officers, according to Reuters on Monday. Turkish authorities said the raids targeted ISIS cells suspected of planning attacks inside the country.
DEADLY STRIKE ON US TROOPS TESTS TRUMP’S COUNTER-ISIS PLAN — AND HIS TRUST IN SYRIA’S NEW LEADER
Security forces loyal to the interim Syrian government ride in the back of a vehicle moving along a road in Syria’s western city of Latakia on March 9, 2025. Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa called for national unity and peace on March 9, amid growing international backlash following the killing of civilians along the country’s coast in the worst violence since the overthrow of former president Bashar al-Assad. (Omar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty Images)
«These are signals, not spikes,» Roggio said. «ISIS operates across regions, adapting to pressure and exploiting weak governance wherever it finds it.»
The renewed U.S. military action raises difficult questions for policymakers about how long the current containment strategy can hold.
While U.S. officials say the Dec. 19 strikes delivered a significant blow to ISIS infrastructure, they have also acknowledged that counterterrorism operations alone cannot eliminate the underlying conditions that allow the group to persist.
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People wave guns in the air as they gather to celebrate the fall of the Syrian regime in Umayyad Square on Dec. 8 in Damascus, Syria. (Ali Haj Suleiman/Getty Images)
«Just because we want to declare the war against terror over doesn’t mean it’s over,» Roggio said. «The enemy gets a vote.»
syria,isis,wars,middle east,national security
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A suspected retaliatory drone attack by pro-Iranian militias struck a major U.S. diplomatic facility in Baghdad on Tuesday, according to The Washington Post.
The newspaper said the strike hit the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center, and no injuries were immediately reported.
Six drones were launched toward the compound, five of which were shot down.
The Post, citing a security official and a State Department alert, reported one drone struck near a guard tower and people at the facility were instructed to «duck and cover.»
GULF STATES INTERCEPT HUNDREDS OF IRANIAN MISSILES AND DRONES, ISSUE JOINT CONDEMNATION WITH US
U.S. Ambassador to Iraq James Jeffrey stands with Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Martin Dempsey, Gen. James Mattis, Gen. Lloyd Austin III and Sgt. Maj. Joseph Allen following a ceremony retiring the ceremonial flag at the Baghdad Diplomatic Support Center on Dec. 15, 2011. (Lucas Jackson/Reuters)
«Accountability is ongoing,» the alert said.
Iraq’s ministry of defense condemned the drone and missile attacks targeting the Martyr Muhammad Alaa Air Base and the Martyr Ali Fallah Air Base in a post on X but did not mention the hit on the U.S. facility or Iran directly.
«In response to these sinful aggressions, the Ministry wishes to clarify and confirm the following facts: These air bases are fully sovereign and Iraqi, subject entirely to the authority of the state and the law, and there is no representation of any foreign forces in them under any designation,» the government account wrote.
The security official told The Washington Post the attack was likely conducted by militias affiliated with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, a loose umbrella group of Iran-aligned Shiite armed factions that have claimed responsibility for attacks on U.S. forces in the region.
US EMBASSY STRUCK BY DRONES IN SAUDI ARABIA AS AMERICANS INSTRUCTED TO SHELTER IN PLACE
A billboard featuring a photo of Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader who was killed in U.S. and Israeli airstrikes, is seen along a street in Baghdad on March 9, 2026. (Murtadha Al-Sudani/Anadolu via Getty Images)
At the start of Operation Epic Fury, the State Department had urged Americans to depart immediately from more than a dozen countries across the Middle East, warning of «serious safety risks» as the Iran war intensified.
Assistant Secretary of State for Consular Affairs Mora Namdar said on March 2 that U.S. citizens should leave Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Israel, the West Bank and Gaza, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
The department said Americans who need help arranging departure via commercial means can contact the State Department 24/7 at +1-202-501-4444 from abroad or +1-888-407-4747 from the U.S. and Canada.
IRAN PROXIES WAGE WAR ON ISRAEL, THREATEN US INTERESTS AS IRAQ SLAMMED FOR NOT DISARMING THEM
Protesters walk through tear gas during clashes with Iraqi security forces near a bridge leading to the Green Zone in Baghdad on March 1, 2026. (Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/ via Getty Images)
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Officials warned conditions in the region remain volatile, and security situations could change quickly as fighting tied to the conflict continues.
At least nine U.S. missions, including Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, Qatar and Israel, issued repeated shelter-in-place directives or advisories at the outset of Iran’s retaliatory attacks against U.S. forces and Israel.
iraq,war with iran,middle east,state department
INTERNACIONAL
Texas conservatives tout record-breaking school choice signups after long battle with teachers unions
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After a decades-long battle with Democrats, teacher unions, and even a few Republicans, Texas conservatives are celebrating the successful launch of what is likely to become the largest school-choice program in the country.
The Lone Star State’s school choice program, called the Texas Education Freedom Accounts, saw record-setting registrations in its first days. Within one hour of the program opening, it had already garnered 8,000 registrations. By the end of the day, it had notched 42,000 signups and three days in, it was sitting at around 62,000 signups. The program is expected to hit 100,000 by its March 17 deadline.
To Texas Acting Comptroller Kelly Hancock, chief administrator of the program, the program’s early success represents a win for what he called «educational freedom.»
«We figure in the State of Texas, we lead the nation in economic freedom, we might as well lead the nation in educational freedom,» he said in an interview with Fox News Digital.
SAN FRANCISCO SCHOOLS ON VERGE OF CLOSING OVER POSSIBLE TEACHERS STRIKE
The Lone Star State’s school choice program, called the Texas Education Freedom Accounts, saw record-setting registrations in its first days. (Bryn Lennon – Formula 1/Formula 1 via Getty Images; Getty Images)
School choice was a major legislative priority for Republican Gov. Greg Abbott, who signed the measure establishing the program into law last May. Under the program, families will receive $10,000 per year to help pay for their child’s private school tuition or costs for home-schooling and virtual learning programs. Children with disabilities can qualify for as much as $30,000 per year.
Though showing early signs of success, getting a school choice program to pass in a state the size of Texas was not easy. As a parent himself, Hancock said he has been an advocate for school choice for the last three decades.
«We got close at times in the state of Texas, where we thought the votes were there, and then we wouldn’t get there. And frankly, a couple of years ago, before Gov. Abbott got involved, I myself was like, ‘OK, I don’t know that we’re ever going to get there,’» he admitted.
While proponents believe the measure gives parents more options by allowing them to take their children out of poor-performing public schools in favor of alternative public or private school choices, others argue it pulls financial resources from Texas’ public school students and subsidizes the private education of wealthy families.
The program saw fierce opposition from the state’s leading teachers unions, including the Texas American Federation of Teachers (Texas AFT) and the Texas State Teachers Association (TSTA).
Ahead of the program launching, Texas AFT issued a statement calling it a «growing billion-dollar boondoggle.»
TRUMP DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ROLLS OUT LATEST STEP TO EXPAND SCHOOL CHOICE NATIONWIDE
Gov. Greg Abbott laughs during a bill signing in the State Capitol on April 23, 2025, in Austin, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
TSTA argued that Texas could not adequately fund both its public schools and the school choice program, saying, «Our underfunded public schools need all the tax dollars that lawmakers spend on K-12 education.»
In a statement shared with Fox News Digital, TSTA President Ovidia Molina vowed to «continue working to kill this expensive and discriminatory program.»
She knocked the state for «most» of the religious schools approved to participate in the program being Christian, which she said, «restrict admission or give preference to children of their own faith.» She also said that «some of these schools refuse admission to LGBTQ students.»
«These schools will use public tax dollars to discriminate against children whose families pay these tax dollars. Public schools do not discriminate. They accept every student who lives in their district, regardless of race, ethnicity, gender identity, religion, family income or whatever, and only public schools should receive our tax revenue,» said Molina.
Hancock, however, pushed back on the idea that the program pits public and private schools against each other. He said Texas, which operates on a constitutionally required balanced budget, was able to fund the school choice program «at the same time that we had record investment in public education and $4 billion in teacher pay, which was a record investment in going directly to paying for our teachers there within the public setting.»
MAJOR CITY SCHOOL DISTRICTS LOSING STUDENTS AS PARENTS SEEK BETTER OPTIONS
School choice was a major legislative priority for Gov. Greg Abbott, who signed the measure establishing the program into law last May. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images)
«We want to be number one, not only in this program, but in education as a whole, both our public schools, our charter schools, and home schools, and private schools,» he explained. «We’re willing to give that investment, and we have our eyes set on it.»
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He framed the opposition to the program as attempts to maintain the status quo and eliminate competition in education.
«It’s the standard pushback, and the reality is no change, no competition, we want the system as is, we don’t want any changes to be involved in it,» he said. «Look, I’m a businessman, and I would love it if in the business I’m in that I had limited or no competition, that I have government protections, that had government funding me, that lived within all those protections. I mean, let’s face it, who wouldn’t want those protections? But that’s not good for… the students, the children.»
«What’s the best for children is competition,» he went on.
Further, he believes the huge number of signups indicates how badly needed the program is.
«I think by opening this up and then the enormous turnout we had, the record turnout we hit, that what it shows is we’re meeting the customers’ needs and the customers are Texans.»
Fox News Digital’s Landon Mion contributed to this report.
texas,education,greg abbott,labor unions
INTERNACIONAL
Una mujer policía murió de un disparo en la cabeza en Brasil y su marido dijo que se suicidó: investigan si la mató
La muerte de una mujer policía de 32 años, Gisele Alves Santana, a mediados de febrero en San Pablo, Brasil, desató una ola de sospechas y contradicciones que ponen en jaque la versión inicial de que se trató de un suicidio y ahora investigan un femicidio.
El caso involucra a su esposo, el teniente coronel de la Policía Militar Geraldo Leite Rosa Neto, de 53 años, quien estaba en el departamento cuando ocurrió el disparo fatal y ahora es considerado sospechoso.
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La decisión se tomó después de que un nuevo informe de autopsia, realizado tras la exhumación del cuerpo de la víctima a pedido de su familia.
Las pericias revelaron lesiones en el rostro y el cuello de la víctima causadas por presiones de los dedos y marcas de uñas.
Según los peritos, hay indicios de que Gisele se desmayó antes de recibir el disparo en la cabeza y de que no se defendió. Gisele Alves Santana tenía 32 años. (Foto: gentileza g1).
El horario de la muerte y las dudas sobre la versión del esposo
Una vecina declaró que escuchó un fuerte ruido a las 7:28 de la mañana del 18 de febrero, media hora antes de que el esposo llamara por primera vez a las urgencias.
En esa llamada, realizada a las 7:57, Neto afirmó: “Mi esposa es policía. Se mató con un tiro en la cabeza. Manden una ambulancia y un patrullero, por favor”.
Minutos después, a las 8:05, volvió a comunicarse, esta vez con los bomberos, y dijo que la mujer aún respiraba. Las autoridades llegaron al lugar a las 8:13.
La posición de la pistola y la escena del crimen
Según el diario Metrópoles, uno de los bomberos que atendió la emergencia declaró que “no era una típica escena de suicidio”.
El cuerpo de la mujer estaba entre el sofá y el mueble de la televisión. Según dijo, el arma estaba “bien encajada” en la mano de la víctima, de una manera que nunca había visto en casos similares.
Por lo inusual de la escena, decidió tomar fotografías. Además, notó que la sangre ya estaba coagulada cuando llegaron y que no había casquillo de bala en el lugar. Un bombero notó que la escena era sospechosa y decidió tomar fotos. (Foto: gentileza g1).
Contradicciones y la actitud fría del esposo
Geraldo afirmó que su esposa tuvo una “reacción negativa” después de que él le pidiera el divorcio y que la mujer agarró un arma y se mató.
El teniente coronel declaró que se estaba duchando cuando escuchó el disparo, pero los primeros bomberos que ingresaron al departamento aseguraron que él estaba completamente seco y que no había rastros de agua en el piso.
Un sargento con 15 años de experiencia afirmó que encontró a Neto en bermuda, sin camisa y seco. Otro oficial de la PM que llegó al lugar también señaló que ni el esposo ni la víctima parecían haberse bañado antes del disparo. Geraldo Leite Rosa Neto dijo que Gisele se suicidó cuando le pidió el divorcio. (Foto: gentileza Metrópoles).
Los rescatistas también se sorprendieron por la falta de desesperación del teniente coronel: no lo vieron llorar ni parecía alterado.
Otro bombero señaló que Neto hablaba con calma por teléfono, cuestionaba el accionar de los bomberos y exigía que la víctima fuera trasladada rápidamente al hospital.
Además, no tenía manchas de sangre en el cuerpo ni en la ropa, lo que indicaría que no intentó asistir a su esposa tras el disparo. La madre de Gisele dijo que su yerno era «abusivo» y controlador con su hija. (Foto: gentileza Metrópoles).
El testimonio de la madre de Gisele refutó la versión de su yerno. Marinalva Vieira afirmó que la pareja tenía una “relación turbulenta” y que el teniente coronel era “abusivo y violento”.
También dijo que el hombre no dejaba que su hija usara lápiz labial ni tacones altos y que controlaba sus conversaciones en las redes sociales.
La madre afirmó además que, una semana antes del incidente, su hija había pedido, en una llamada telefónica, que sus padres la fueran a buscar porque “no soportaba la presión” y quería separarse.
Llamada a un juez y movimientos sospechosos
Entre los contactos que hizo Neto esa mañana, uno llamó la atención de la familia de la víctima: llamó al juez Marco Antônio Pinheiro Machado Cogan, del Tribunal de Justicia de San Pablo.
El magistrado llegó al edificio a las 9:07 y subió al departamento con el teniente coronel. Según el abogado de la familia, José Miguel da Silva Junior, el juez fue la primera persona contactada tras el disparo y deberá explicar su presencia en el lugar.
Leé también: Pese a la advertencia de Trump, Irán atacó barcos comerciales en el estrecho de Ormuz y crece la tensión en Medio Oriente
Las cámaras de seguridad registraron que el juez salió al pasillo a las 9:18 y que Neto apareció con otra ropa a las 9:29.
El caso, que comenzó como un supuesto suicidio, sigue bajo investigación y medios locales apuntan a la pronta detención de Neto.
Brasil tuvo un récord de femicidios en 2025 con 4 muertes por día
En 2025, una década después de aprobarse la Ley del Femicidio, Brasil alcanzó la cifra récord de 1518 víctimas, es decir, cuatro mujeres por día, según informó la agencia de noticias Agencia Brasil.
El año anterior, en 2024, el país ya había establecido un récord con 1458 víctimas, según datos oficiales del Ministerio de Justicia y Seguridad Pública.
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