Several gunmen attacked a Shiite mosque in Muscat, the capital of Oman, killing six people and wounding nearly 30 more, marking the deadliest attack in the country in recent memory. The Islamic State later claimed responsibility for the attack, although the Sunni group did not provide evidence. (AP)
Our Take
The Islamic State—also referred to by the acronyms IS, ISIS and ISIL—has claimed responsibility for a number of recent high-profile attacks, most notably in Russia and Iran earlier this year. This shooting is yet another reminder that the group remains a threat after years in which it had appeared increasingly weakened.
But those appearances were not entirely deceiving. If the Islamic State has been concentrating on high-profile attacks in countries that are relatively distant from its former territorial base of operations, it is because it has indeed lost its hold on those territories, even as its position in Afghanistan has been degraded.