CIA Director Mike Pompeo said on Thursday that the fall of the Islamic State “caliphate” is going to be only partial as the group continues to influence citizens around the world.
“It would be foolish to predict there’s going to be no son of ISIS,” Mr. Pompeo said at the National Security Summit organized by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
“This threat from radical Islamic terrorism is real. The fall of the caliphate is great news. It is a historic achievement, but it is partial at best,” he added.
The CIA head noted that ISIS remains the capacity to conduct external operations.
“The intent still remains, the capability remains, and we worry too that there is capability that we just don’t see,” he added.
In the past several months, ISIS has lost its major strongholds in Iraq and Syria, including Mosul and the caliphate’s “capital” city of Raqqa.