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State SecretsAuthor: The Cipher Brief
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ISIS Reawakens: What the Bondi Attack Signals for Global Terror
Monday, 30 March, 2026
A mass-casualty attack at Sydney's Bondi Beach in December 2025 shattered assumptions about the decline of ISIS - and raised urgent questions about what comes next. In this episode of State Secrets, Suzanne Kelly speaks with terrorism experts Levi West and Andrew Zammit to unpack what made this attack different: months of planning, coordinated tactics, and a clear alignment with evolving ISIS strategy. The discussion reveals a troubling shift - from isolated, impulsive attacks to more deliberate, semi-organized operations fueled by sophisticated propaganda and global events like the Gaza conflict. The group also examines how ISIS is leveraging English-language messaging, rebuilding momentum across regions like Afghanistan and the Sahel, and blurring the line between "inspired" and "directed" attacks. Most importantly, they explore what this means for U.S. and allied security services at a time when counterterrorism is no longer the top global priority. Bottom line: ISIS may look diminished - but the threat is adapting in ways that are harder to detect, disrupt, and defeat.
