This isn’t really a change in the Islamic State’s strategy. I discuss it in my book The Complete Infidel’s Guide to ISIS. The most revealing thing Comey says is, “We’re not sure exactly what’s going on.” Truer words were never spoken! Obama’s FBI as a matter of policy refuses to acknowledge or study the ideology, motives and goals of the jihadis, thereby hamstringing its response to them.
“Obama’s ISIS strategy only increases risk of a US attack,” by Paul Sperry, New York Post, November 22, 2015:
President Obama boasts he’s “made some progress in trying to reduce the flow of foreign fighters” traveling from America to Iraq and Syria. He cites this as a key success in his much-maligned Islamic State strategy.
While it’s true fewer American Muslims are joining ISIS abroad, hold the applause. More are staying at home and plotting terrorist attacks here.
Since July, the FBI has seen just a half-dozen US travelers trying to reach ISIS’ caliphate, a trickle compared with the dozens the agency was detecting in the preceding months. All told, more
than 250 Americans have gone to Syria and Iraq to fight with ISIS.At the same time, investigators have seen a spike in the number of homegrown ISIS cases.
FBI Director James Comey recently warned that his caseload of ISIS suspects has exploded to more than 900 in all 50 states, with hotspots in the New York-New Jersey area, as well as Chicago, Detroit, Cleveland and Minneapolis.
These are active, open investigations and don’t include the 66 Muslim men and women around the country the bureau has already charged with alleged ISIS activities over the past two years.
The huge caseload is overwhelming the FBI’s capacity to conduct surveillance and disrupt terrorist plots. Making matters worse, ISIS suspects in the United States are switching to mobile and gaming apps with encryption that thwarts the FBI’s ability to monitor their communications. If suspects have gone “dark,” agents may not be able to track their plans.
Comey is scratching his head over the sudden shift in focus by ISIS wannabes from foreign fighting to local jihad.
“We’ve seen fewer and fewer Americans trying to travel there,” he said Thursday.
“One part of the change is ISIL urging people not to travel but to stay and kill where you are,” Comey said, cautioning, “We’re not sure exactly what’s going on.”
Ain’t that the truth.
But other officials cite a paradox. As federal authorities have gotten better at identifying and interdicting foreign travelers, they’ve discouraged attempts to fight over there and swelled the threat here.
“It’s logical we’d see an increase in homegrown jihadis after slowing the flow of foreign fighters,” said former special FBI agent John Guandolo, who headed counterterrorism training at the bureau’s Washington field office after 9/11….

Angemon says
Who would have thought that blocking people who want to go and kill unbelievers from leaving the country would lead them to kill unbelievers in US soil?
He can scratch his head until he picks his brain. Under the current paradigm of thinking that the islamic state has nothing to do with islam and jihadis are just poor, unemployed thrill seekers, the threat is only going to escalate.
Michael Copeland says
Memo to Comey:
“The jihad will lead to smashing Western civilization and replacing it with Islam which will dominate the world … .”
Muhammad Mahdi Akef, leader of the Muslim Brotherhood 2004-10
See “Islam’s Vision of Destruction: Muslims Speak”
http://libertygb.org.uk/v1/index.php/news-libertygb/5981-islam-s-vision-of-destruction-muslims-speak
old whie guy says
the headline should read, FBI top dog admits he is stupid and does not know how to do his job.
old white guy says
jihad watch is refusing to post my simple criticism of the FBI guy. what’s up with that?
? says
That’s the FBI guy doing his job policing what is being said about him instead of policing the real enemies. They don’t know who the enemy is and what they’re doing but they surely know what the likes of you and I are doing.
? says
That’s the FBI guy policing the Internet instead of the enemy. As usual.
gravenimage says
No its not, old white guy–your comments posted fine, just above.
Sometimes it takes a minute or two for posts to appear–this does *not* mean you are somehow being censored by Jihad Watch,
? says
As I thought…. Of course they don’t know, how could they its not like the terrorists are hiding their motives and where they like congregating. There’s no way that they could possibly know that the Koran teaches violence and Muslims are taking their thug prophet’s words seriously and literally.
Ashley says
“One part of the change is ISIL urging people not to travel but to stay and kill where you are,” Comey said, cautioning, “We’re not sure exactly what’s going on.”
_____________________________
Allow me to paint you a picture, Mr. Comey. ISIS is here in America, and ISIS wants to slaughter Americans. There is no need to travel.
Now do you see what’s going on?
underbed cat says
Ashley I think nothing could be a better response to Mr. Comey about understanding muslim ideology and isis than your comment…..since it has been happening already in the U.S. at numerous colleges, schools etc..
“..Allow me to paint you a picture, Mr. Comey. ISIS is here in America, and ISIS wants to slaughter Americans. There is no need to travel.
Now do you see what’s going on?”
I love it!
Actually, I give him credit for talking about the investigations in all 50 states…missing some..I think FBI Director Mr. Comey, a employee of Obama, has been pushing back on the “isis has nothing to do with islam” policy…I am sure he knows it does. I know lots of people who do not believe isis is here….muslims are only a keystroke away…from communicating, or just opening their koran they can read the directives.
mortimer says
James Comey, the top cop can’t figure out the Muslim mind? No wonder. Obummer thinks we can understand Islam by singing kumbaya!
James Comey and others need to learn 1) the JIHAD DOCTRINE 2) the TAQIYYA DOCTRINE 3) the KAFIR DOCTRINE 4) the ISLAMIC APARTHEID DOCTRINE … al Walaa wal Baraa 5) the MISOGYNY DOCTRINE 6) the CALIPHATE DOCTRINE 7) the BRAINWASHING DOCTRINE … taqlid 8) the DUALISM DOCTRINE.
Without learning the bases of POLITICAL Islam, no one can understand POLITICAL ISLAM, observe it, recognize it and disable it.
When you understand those SEVEN DOCTRINES, you haven’t a chance to understand Islam.
mortimer says
Correction: If you DON’T understand those EIGHT DOCTRINES, you haven’t a chance to understand Islam.
Custos Custodum says
Thanks for a well thought out, succinct summary of the EIGHT DOCTRINES!
This should be given much broader currency, along with the brilliant and tireless work of our host Robert Spencer.
Jeremiah says
They need to move and move fast. Raid the mosques. All of them!
Beagle says
It’s really not complicated. Jihad is an effort to Islamize the world and establish sharia law. Sword jihad, terrorism, is used to strike fear in the hearts of the unbelievers. The ‘good cop’ pen and tongue jihadis like CAIR propose solutions and conduct dawah. If you convert and memorize some Quran ayats, all will be well after all.
It is the nature of jihad to think globally, but kill locally.
Thomas says
The F.B.I. Is not clueless on this jihad, things are going just as they have planned. The clueless ones are the everyday citizens who are being told all this horse crap about peaceful Islam. This is the end of western civilization. The only one to blame is ourselves for not doing anything.
Michael Copeland says
The Obama administration deprives the FBI and state police of Islamic dots to connect. The result, not just the baffled FBI Director, but multiple victims of Jihad bomb attacks, as in Boston.
“A Triple Unsolved Murder: Unconnected Dots”
http://libertygb.org.uk/v1/index.php/news-libertygb/5778-a-triple-unsolved-murder-unconnected-dots
Peter says
Federal Bureau of Incompetence (FBI)
Wellington says
“We’re not sure exactly what’s going on.”
Could be the motto of the American government nowadays.
Peggy says
I see naasing, I know naasing. OK Sargeant Schutz you can go now.
gravenimage says
FBI top dog: Islamic State “urging people not to travel but to stay and kill where you are. We’re not sure exactly what’s going on.”
…………………….
D’oh!
Edward says
Wow, it seems that the whole country has been Islamized or mesmerized to a point that even the authorities are saying: “urging people not to travel but to stay and kill where you are. We’re not sure exactly what’s going on.”
Here’s link to learn more about ‘The Dupe of Islam’:
http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2014/12/the_dupe_of_islam.html
And if you want to raise your spirits up a notch up a little see energetic firebrand, Judge Jeanine’s Foxnews video clip to hear what she suggests to our POTUS: “We can handle the truth, Mr. President”
Posted Nov. 22, 2015 – 7:10 – POTUS’ remarks on terror continue to incite and divide
http://video.foxnews.com/v/4626859901001/judge-jeanine-we-can-handle-the-truth-mr-president/?intcmp=hpvid1#sp=show-clips
I would think, at this time, that Judge Jeanine Pirro could well complement the Trump’s/Cruz’s immigration vision as their US Attorney General.
mach37 says
“… grand jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and ‘sabotaging’ its miserable house house by their hands and by the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and Allah’s religion is made victorious over all other religions.”
All FBI agents should be required to read the 1991 Muslim Brotherhood internal memo available at http://www.investigativeproject.org/documents/misc/20.pdf . This document is 32 pages long; the first half is a facsimile of the Arabic text, followed by an English translation. The first few pages are about 75% Islamic religious expressions, showing that this is an Islamic religious organization first and foremost.
That is probably what Obama’s plants in the DOD, DOJ and CIA have kept from being presented to agents and other employees of the FBI, NSA, and other Administration departments.
The memo begins with a list of 29 Muslim organizations apparently recipients of the memo. The second on the list is “MSA – Muslim Student’s Association” – which Huma Abedin belonged to. The memo starts out with “In the name of God, the Beneficent, the Merciful; Thanks be to God, Lord of the Two Worlds, Prayers and peace be upon the master of the Messengers.“ The next heading under that is:
“An Explanatory Memorandum On the General Strategic Goal for the Group In North America 5/22/1991”
First on the agenda is the Strategic Goal of the group in America:
“Enablement of Islam in North America, meaning: establishing an effective and a stable Islamic Movement led by the Muslim Brotherhood which adopts Muslims’ causes domestically and globally, and which works to expand the observant Muslim base, aims at unifying and directing Muslims’ efforts, presents Islam as a civilization alternative, and supports the global Islamic State wherever it is”.
A few pages later we find: “- It must be stressed that it has become clear and emphatically known that all is in agreement that we must ‘settle’ or ‘enable’ Islam and its Movement in this part of the world.”
The most clear intent of the memo is found later: “… must understand that their work in America is a kind of grand jihad in eliminating and destroying the Western civilization from within and ‘sabotaging’ its miserable house by their hands and by the hands of the believers so that it is eliminated and Allah’s religion is made victorious over all other religions.”
billybob says
We are missing out on a wonderful opportunity here. Those who want to go to fight with ISIS should be allowed to leave without impediment. In fact, “sting” type operations should be mounted to assist them in whatever way, even financially, to leave. Then they should have tracking devices installed on their cell phones and in their luggage and be tracked and followed to their final destinations and greeted with a missile strike from a drone homing in on the tracking signal.