Islamic State
a terrorist organization that grew out of al-Qaeda in Iraq and seeks to impose a caliphate, a form of Islamic government promoted by Islamist fundamentalist reformers. Its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, declared the land under the group’s control in Iraq and Syria the Islamic State on June 29, 2014. The group has gained notoriety for barbaric decapitations, immolations, and draconian social laws. It has drawn recruits worldwide with jihadi propaganda disseminated through social media.