J IH ADIST AND E T H NO -NAT IONALIST T E R R OR ISM carried out in Syria and Iraq. The ‘Islamic State’ continues to be able to draw on cash reserves; it moreover obtains funds through robbery and the extortion of protection money. The FIS looks at the ‘Islamic State’ as an integral phenomenon. Its transnational jihadist ideology thrives on a breeding ground of resentment, and manifestations of this ideology are flourishing to varying degrees within the jihadist movement. State/Caliphate | At the end of 2018, after approximately three and a half years, the ‘Islamic State’’s caliphate was defeated. Its strategic goal, the creation of a global caliphate, remains unchanged. The ‘Islamic State’ still wants to be a state in the literal sense of the word. Armed group | With the break-up of its state-like structures, the military units which previously operated openly have been destroyed or driven underground. Nonetheless, the ‘Islamic State’ uses guerrilla tactics to carry out frequent attacks on security forces in Syria and above all in Iraq. Regional power | With the dismantlement of the caliphate at the end of 2017, the ‘Islamic State’ lost its status as a regional power. It is now no longer a power with the ability to threaten states, but remains a security problem at the regional level. Terrorist actor | The ‘Islamic State’ has never abandoned its policy of systematically spreading fear and terror: terror remains its primary method. The ‘Islamic State’ and the supporters inspired by it carry out terrorist activities almost all around the globe. The ‘Islamic State’ also claims responsibility for attacks, which it did not carry out itself. Utopia | The utopia of an Islamic world state, the caliphate, in which Muslims can live according to Islamic law, is not a new idea. However, the ‘Islamic State’ has succeeded in revitalising this utopia and giving it a new form. In its early days, it was able to attract mass support and to establish, finance, defend and administer a rudimentary state structure. Furthermore, outside Syria and Iraq, numerous jihadist organisations pledged allegiance to the ‘Islamic State’, thereby extending its influence and power. Unlike al-Qaeda, the ‘Islamic State’ temporarily realised the utopia in a rudimentary form. SIT UAT ION R E PORT 2 0 1 9 | FIS 49