Islamic state plots disrupted and operatives arrested in 4 countries

In August and September, Kuwaiti, Israeli, Turkish, and French officials thwarted several suspected Islamic State attacks and arrested and indicted alleged Islamic State members and sympathizers, underscoring the organization’s global reach despite over a decade of counterterrorism pressure.

Kuwait

Kuwaiti security officials made three separate arrests of suspected Islamic State members in August. In early to mid-August, Kuwaiti authorities arrested three individuals in the same Islamic State cell who were plotting to attack a Shiite mosque and other unidentified targets in the country. A day after those arrests, authorities arrested two minors who they said had received training in explosives manufacturing and communicated with Islamic State members.

In addition, on August 12, the Kuwaiti Interior Ministry announced that authorities had thwarted a terrorist plot targeting an unidentified facility and arrested a Kuwaiti national associated with the Islamic State. The suspect had reportedly constructed a drone for use in a planned attack after receiving explosive and drone manufacturing training.

Israel

On August 4, Israeli authorities arrested two young men, one of whom was a minor, followed by indicting them on August 28 for allegedly planning an Islamic State-inspired terrorist attack. One of the suspects, Ibrahim Kaabia, 19, a resident of Haifa, had allegedly sworn allegiance to the Islamic State and was planning to attack an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) base in northern Israel.

Separately, on August 18, Israeli authorities charged Abdullah Gergawi with security offenses and illegal possession of firearms and ammunition following his arrest in Segev Shalom, near Beersheba, on July 19. Gergawi was allegedly planning to conduct an attack on a Beersheba nightclub with a car bomb. He had also reportedly been in contact with Islamic State activists and was planning to travel to Syria to join the organization.

In addition, on September 2, Israeli authorities arrested Yaqoub Shibli in the northern village of Shibil after he allegedly pledged allegiance to the Islamic State while watching the organization’s propaganda videos online. Shibli was subsequently charged with membership in a terrorist organization on September 7.

Also on September 2, the Haifa District Attorney’s office charged a former Israeli Defense Force soldier, Khamis Sawaed, with training to fight abroad with the Islamic State. Sawaed, 30, is from the Galilee village of Husniyya and served in the IDF from 2017 to 2019.

Sawaed was arrested in August. During his subsequent interrogation, Israeli security officials discovered that he had first become interested in the Islamic State in 2023. In 2024, he began watching Islamic State training videos before deciding to fight alongside the organization in Syria or in Africa. Throughout 2026, the former IDF soldier also downloaded instructional manuals and watched training videos in preparation for joining the jihadist group.

Turkey

On September 4, Turkish authorities killed an alleged Islamic State operative, Berkan Cil, 21, during a police operation in Istanbul. Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization and the Istanbul Police Department were conducting a joint operation to apprehend Cil when a shootout erupted, killing the suspect and a civilian. Turkish authorities said the operation likely thwarted a terrorist attack.

During a subsequent search of Cil’s residence, authorities recovered an unlicensed handgun, 200 rounds of ammunition, and digital materials associated with the Islamic State.

France

In early September, French authorities detained three men on suspicion of “criminal association with a terrorist organization for the purpose of preparing acts of terrorism.” French authorities had opened an investigation in July after detecting suspected terrorist activity inside a WhatsApp group called “Soldiers of Allah.” The three suspects were allegedly considering attacks against France’s Jewish community while also preparing to join the Islamic State in Africa.

According to French outlet RTL, one of the suspects had been in contact with Jessica Bowie, a 35-year-old woman from Albany, New York, whom the FBI detained in mid-August for allegedly attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization, the Islamic State. Bowie allegedly planned to attack the New York State Capitol with an explosive device.

No evidence shows that the incidents or individuals in Kuwait, Israel, Turkey, and France are operationally connected. However, they collectively demonstrate the Islamic State’s resilience after more than a decade of sustained counterterrorism operations and the destruction of its territorial caliphate.

The jihadist group’s online propaganda network, increasingly aided by artificial intelligence, continues to recruit and radicalize individuals across national boundaries, inspiring them to plan attacks or travel abroad to join its affiliates.

Will Selber is a retired US CENTCOM foreign area officer with over 4 years in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is the owner of Grumpy Combat Veteran on Substack.