Inside Syria: With its enemies diverted or fighting each other, Isis is making a swift and deadly comeback

For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. ​Najmaldin Karim, the Kurdish former governor of Kirkuk, says that the Iraqi security services never really secured Hawijah, traditionally a hardcore Isis area, because they were too busy confronting the Kurds. My relatives who were fighting Isis in Deir Ezzor know they must go back to Afrin to fight the Turks there.” Video shows the moment a bomb hits a building in Syria as new onslaught new onslaught causes mass civilian casualties The re-emergence of Isis is still only in its early stages. In Raqqa, where Isis held out for four months until 20 October last year, there are rumours of Isis “sleeper cells”, but there have been no attacks says Masloum, an SDF field commander in the city. But it can still do a lot to stir up ethnic and sectarian hatred since many Syrians suspect people from Raqqa as secret Isis supporters and likewise in Iraq in respect to Mosul.