Road to the Caliphate: May 5-25, 2013

Primary Sources:

Shaykh Abū Basīr al-Ṭarṭūsī: “They Leave the People of Syria, the Soldiers of al-Shām, and They Join the Iraqi State”

Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham: A martyrdom operation of Katibat Hafidh al-Nidham in Harasta

The Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham starts to manifest more openly

Secondary Sources:

Under the black flag of al-Qaeda, the Syrian city ruled by gangs of extremists – Telegraph

The ar-Raqqa executions ~ Confirmation of the Islamic State in Iraq and as-Sham by Pieter Van Ostaeyen

Insight: Syria’s Nusra Front eclipsed by Iraq-based al Qaeda | Reuters

Jabhat al-Nusra and The Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham by Aymenn Jawad Al-Tamimi