The UN has released its 32nd monitoring report on ISIL and Al-Qaida, the report includes some interesting details as to the operations of both groups inside Iraq and Syria. Below I summarise the reports findings for Iraq and Syria, starting with IS:

• IS Core continues to sustain leadership losses, most recently with their head of the general directorate of provinces, Abu Sara al-Iraqi being killed in an aistrike in Syria on the 24th of February. Abu Sara is assessed to have been extremely influential inside, influencing strategy and personnel assignment. His death is assessed to have been disruptive, but only for a short term. Abu Saras successor has been identified as possibly Abu Zeinab.

• Member states could not confirm Turkeys claim to have killed Abu al-Hussain al-Hussaini al-Quraishi, with one member state suggesting that they only killed the groups security leader in Syria.

• As a result of attrition, IS has adopted a flat leadership structure, with the leader having a lesser role in day to day operations. The groups leadership losses are suggested to be behind the lack of a surge in attacks during Ramadan this year.

• IS is thought to have between 5,000-7,000 members across both countries, most of which are fighters. The group reduced attacks as a matter of strategy and focuses on reorganising and recruiting.

• Most senior IS leaders remain in north-west Syria, although some have relocated to Daraa which has an estimated presence of several hundred IS fighters. It is believed that the groups Sharia commander and several Arab leaders are in Daraa. Some leadership has also relocated to the central Badia and the Iraqi border, where the group seeks to abuse the relatively porous crossing.

• Whilst Iraqi Counter-Terrorism efforts keep the pressure on IS, the group seeks to exploit security weaknesses in the Kurdistan region in order to enable attacks and resupply its cells.

• The group in Iraq is overseen by Abu Abd al-Qader.

• al-Qaders predecessor, Abu Khadija has taken on a role of increased importance, overseeing the Iraq-Syria border as well as the Bilad al-Rafidayn regional office.

• One member state noted a connection between IS and organised crime groups in Mosul, Kirkuk, Tikrit and Ramadi

• IS attacks were primarily restricted to rural areas, maintaining a presence in its strongholds of Kirkuk, Tarmiya, Salaheddin, and Diyala.

• The majority of IS Iraq leaders are based in the Hamrin mountains, and Anbar province is used to reorganise and restructure

• IS Iraq is organised into eight units: administration, media, Sharia, procurement, finances, groundwork, explosive manufacturing, and Prisoner release. The group is becoming increasingly risk averse to losing personnel, hoping to release its prisoners and recruit from vuln...