Isis, Isil, IS or Daesh? One group, many names

When talking about the group - which has also spawned affiliates elsewhere in the Middle East, Africa and Asia - UN and US officials generally use the acronym "Isil", the acronym of "Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant". 

The group itself has not used that name since June 2014 when it declared the creation a caliphate and shortened its name to "Islamic State" (IS) to reflect its expansionist ambitions. 

Since then, BBC News has been using that term, but qualifying it as "Islamic State group" or "self-styled Islamic State" and shortening it to "IS" on subsequent mentions.

Other media have continued to use "Isil" or "Isis", which is based on the other widely used translations of the group's former name - "Islamic State in Iraq and Syria" or "Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham".

But the term "Daesh" (or Da'ish) has also gained currency, both in the Middle East and further afield, and has been used as a way of challenging the legitimacy of the group due to the negative connotations of the word.

Daesh is essentially an Arabic acronym formed from the initial letters of the group's previous name in Arabic - "al-Dawla al-Islamiya fil Iraq wa al-Sham". Although it does not mean anything as a word in Arabic, it sounds unpleasant and the group's supporters object to its use. 

Daesh also sounds similar to an Arabic verb that means to tread underfoot, trample down, or crush something.

IS, Isil and Isis

The root of the Isil-Isis inconsistency lies in the Arabic word "al-Sham".

At first, news outlets were unsure how to translate it into English, as it was not immediately clear what the group was actually referring to.

Al-Sham can be translated variously as "the Levant", "Greater Syria", "Syria" or even "Damascus".

The term al-Sham was commonly used during the rule of the Muslim Caliphs from the 7th Century to describe the area between the Mediterranean and the Euphrates, Anatolia (in present day Turkey) and Egypt.

It was used until the first half of the 20th Century, when Britain and France drew the new borders of the Middle East and created nation states. 

The term "Levant" had for centuries been used by English speakers to describe the eastern part of the Mediterranean, with its islands and the countries adjoining.

After World War One, the colonial powers understood it to be the area comprising what is now Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, the Palestinian Territories and part of south-eastern Turkey.

However, the term's colonial association means it would be unlikely to be endorsed by the jihadists. They would also probably object to using just "Syria", as it suggests their aspirations are limited to the modern state's borders. Various experts have therefore said that the word al-Sham should not be translated.

Daesh

In the Arabic-speaking world, where the use of acronyms is otherwise uncommon, Daesh is used widely but with pejorative overtones.

The label has gained currency despite or perhaps as a direct consequence of the irritation it causes the group, and is now used widely across the world by politicians and in the media.

"Frankly, this evil death cult is neither a true representation of Islam, nor is it a state," UK Prime Minister David Cameron told Parliament in December 2015 when announcing that his government would be joining France in calling the group "Daesh" rather than "Isil".

Record number of gun sale background checks on Black Friday

The agency processed a record 185,345 background checks — roughly two per second — the same day that three people were killed and nine others wounded in an attack at a Planned Parenthood office in Colorado.

The agency received about 5 percent fewer background check requests on Black Friday in 2014, the FBI said.

FBI background checks processed by the National Instant Criminal Background Check System are conducted for gun purchases from federally licensed deals and for permits to carry guns. A background check does not mean a gun was purchased but manufacturers rely on the background check statistics as a measurement of the industry's health.

The FBI started processing background checks for potential gun owners in 1998 as part of the Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act.

The previous record for the most background checks in a single day was Dec. 21, 2012, about a week after 20 children and six adults were shot to death in a Connecticut elementary school. The week following the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary saw the processing of 953,613 gun background checks.

After the Colorado shootings, President Barack Obama once again called for stricter limits on the availability of guns.

"Enough is enough," Obama said in a statement on Saturday. He said the Planned Parenthood shootings showed the need to "to do something about the easy accessibility of weapons of war" for "people who have no business wielding them."

Robert Lewis Dear, 57, is accused of killing a local police officer and two others in the shooting rampage. He is expected to be formally charged later this month.

Law enforcement officials have not disclosed details about multiple weapons found after Dear's arrest.

‘Britain Safer Tonight’ As MPs Back Airstrikes

The controversial Government plans were approved by 397 votes to 223 - a majority of 174.

Sky sources say 67 Labour MPs backed airstrikes, including deputy leader Tom Watson, while seven Tories rebelled in opposition to action.

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said: "Britain is safer tonight because of the decision the House of Commons has taken."

But the Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was said to be "disappointed" at the defeat.

Anti-war protesters who had been demonstrating outside Westminster booed after hearing the outcome of the vote.

A cross-party bid to block UK airstrikes in Syria was also rejected by 390 votes to 211 - a majority of 179.

The votes followed a highly charged Commons debate lasting more than 10 hours, in which the Prime Minister stressed the threat posed by the extremists, whom he branded "woman-raping, Muslim-murdering, medieval monsters".

However, Mr Corbyn warned against an "ill-thought-out rush to war".

Critics of the Government's plan challenged claims that 70,000 moderate fighters would be able to take on IS.

The most impassioned speech of the day was made by shadow foreign secretary Hilary Benn, who in a highly unusual move closed the debate for Labour with a speech in support of military intervention.

He was among a number of senior Labour figures to defy the Labour leader and speak in favour of airstrikes.

Mr Corbyn had been forced to give his MPs a free vote amid splits within his frontbench team and the threat of resignations.

Mr Benn was applauded from both sides of the Commons chamber for his speech.

He said: "We must now confront this evil. It is now time for us to do our bit in Syria."

Mr Hammond said: "We are very pleased that a significant number of Labour MPs have voted with the Government tonight so we have got a clear majority across the House of Commons in support of the action that we are now going to be taking to degrade this evil terrorist organisation."

David Cameron said: "I believe the House has taken the right decision to keep the UK safe - military action in Syria as one part of a broader strategy."

Labour shadow cabinet member Diane Abbott said a majority of MPs had backed Mr Corbyn.

"He will be proved to be right," she said, but insisted there would be no recriminations.

UK Jets To Start Syria Missions Within Hours

British jets will begin operations against Islamic State in Syria overnight, according to Sky sources.

RAF jets and drones are ready to launch airstrikes "very quickly", Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said.

Sources told Sky two RAF Tornado jets have taken off from Cyprus for the "operating area".

Tornado GR4s based at the Akrotiri base in Cyprus are expected to carry out the first sorties against IS.

They carry a range of munitions including Paveway IV guided bombs and precision guided Brimstone missiles.

'France likely to close more than 100 mosques'

France is likely to close up to 160 mosques in the coming months as part of a nationwide police operation under the state of emergency which allows places of worship that promote radical views to be shut down, one of the country's chief Imams has said.

France shutters three mosques

Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve told journalists on Wednesday that three mosques had been closed over the past two weeks during the state of emergency - marking the first time France had taken such action against places of worship.

On Wednesday, police shut a suspected radical mosque east of Paris and arrested the owner of a revolver found in related raids as part of the crackdown, Cazeneuve said.

Security officers found "jihadist" documents in the raids at the mosque and related premises in Lagny-sur-Marne.

They placed a total of nine people under house arrest and banned another 22 from leaving the country, Cazeneuve said.

The assets of Imam Mohamed Hammoumi, who ran the mosque and the cultural associations until he left to live in Egypt in 2014, were frozen in April, AFP reported.

The other two mosques closed last week were in Gennevilliers, northwest of Paris, and in the southeastern city of Lyon, Cazeneuve added.

France has so far raided 2,235 homes and buildings, taken 232 people into custody and confiscated 334 weapons, 34 of them war grade, the interior minister said.

[Agencies]

Following news that three mosques have already been closed since the November 13 attacks on the capital, Hassan El Alaoui, who is in charge of nominating regional and local Muslim imams and mediating between the imams and prison officials, told Al Jazeera on Wednesday that more were set to be shuttered.

France extended emergency law from 12 days to three months amid increased security threats following the Paris attacks [Getty]

"According to official figures and our discussions with the interior ministry, between 100 and 160 more mosques will be closed because they are run illegally without proper licenses, they preach hatred, or use takfiri speech," he said.

Takfiris are classified as Muslims who accuse others of the same faith of apostasy, an act which has become a sectarian slur.

"This kind of speech shouldn't even be allowed in Islamic countries, let alone secure countries like France," El Alaoui, who became the first Muslim prison chaplain-general in 2005, said.

The recent mosque closures, he added, were made under "a legal act that the authorities have" and must have happened because "of some illegal things that they found".

The Imam also rejected those suspected of carrying out the suicide bomb and gun attacks, which left 130 people dead, as "terrorists".

"Those terrorists are a bunch of thieves and drug dealers that wore religious clothing," he said. "The whole issue is not about Muslims, but about terrorists. It's an issue of security for everyone."

There are a total of 2,600 mosques in France, El Alaoui said.

arquardt, a Parisian Muslim and cofounder of the al-Kawakibi Foundation, which works towards Islamic reformation, also said that he expects more mosques to be closed soon.

"It hardly comes as a surprise to me that there are mosques that absolutely deserve to be closed in France," he told Al Jazeera.

He said that he has joined the Islamic prayer in several French cities "and been shocked of what I've heard".

"There was a world view [being preached] that was quite worrisome. I'm talking about the politicisation of Islam. I've heard some speeches that tend to promote the notion among Muslims present that Islamophobia is organised by the French state, that somehow non-Muslim French people are against the Muslim minority."

France's extended emergency rule has seen a surge in arrests, house arrests and raids on homes and private property in the wake of the Paris attacks - including at mosques and Muslim-owned businesses - and has raised alarm among rights organisations that the law could curb civil liberties.

Meanwhile, there are fears that France's Muslim minority, the largest in any European country, is facing increased persecution as some fail to differentiate between Muslims and those who join or support armed groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group, which claimed responsibility for the deadly violence on November 13.

"Being Muslim in France is not easy, it's a complicated condition," acknowledged Marquardt, "especially if you are a woman wearing a veil, you are a victim of discrimination, and if you're a man you find it hard to get a job."

Rising Islamophobia in the wake of the attacks, he added, was "unsurprising", though not "understandable".

"The link between people committing barbaric acts throughout the world is that they think of themselves as Muslim. As long as Muslims refuse to look at that honestly....I think it's not very serious intellectually and dubious morally and it's shocking this point is going to keep on coming."

Police Stop SUV After 14 Killed In Shooting

Triage units have been set up near the scene

San Bernardino police said another 17 were injured in the attack in the city, about 60 miles (96km) east of Los Angeles. 

He said the suspects were armed with "long guns" in the assault, which lasted for "several minutes" at the Inland Regional Center, a facility for people with disabilities.

Shots were reportedly fired from the vehicle during a chase and armoured BearCat vehicles surrounded it, with officers believing there was at least one wounded suspect in the back.

Police confirmed one suspect was "down" while pictures appeared to show another suspect being taken into custody and another was said to be possibly at large. Authorities could not immediately confirm if the operation was linked to the earlier shooting.

One police officer was hurt during the gun battle with the suspects and was taken to hospital with injuries that were "not life-threatening".

The attack - on an auditorium packed with around 100 people - is the deadliest shooting in the US since the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Connecticut, in December 2012, when 27 people including the gunman were killed.

"They came prepared to do what they did as if they were on a mission," San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan told reporters.

Brandon Hunt, who works at the centre, said a banquet for health department workers was being held inside at the time.

Up to three men in military gear carried out the attack, San Bernardino Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Teri Adams told Sky News.

The suspects are believed to have fled in a black SUV. 

A bomb squad was sent to look into a number of suspicious items left in the building.

The motive for the attack is unknown and an FBI spokesman told a news conference: "We do not know if this is a terrorist incident."

Police are interviewing witnesses who reportedly saw men changing clothes near the scene of the shooting, which is along a main road and next to a golf course and recreation centre.

Terry Petit fought back tears as he said he had received texts from his daughter saying she was hiding from gunfire at the facility.

Mr Petit read a message to reporters outside the Inland Regional Center that said: "People shot.

"In the office waiting for cops. Pray for us. I am locked in an office."

Triage units have been set up near the scene, with some people seen being wheeled away on gurneys.

Television images showed people being evacuated with their arms raised from the building, where hundreds of people work.

Roads were blocked off and stores, office buildings and at least one school were placed on lockdown in the city of 214,000 people.

US President Barack Obama and California Governor Jerry Brown were briefed on the incident.

"We have a pattern now of mass shootings that has no parallel anywhere else in the world," Mr Obama told CBS News.

"There are some steps we could take, not to eliminate every one of these mass shootings, but to improve the odds that they don't happen as frequently."

Russia: Turkish president benefits from ISIL oil deals

Russian officials have released satellite images which they claim show that Turkey buys oil from ISIL [EPA]

Russia has upped its dispute with Turkey further by claiming to have evidence that proves President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his family are benefiting from the illegal smuggling of oil territory held by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant group (ISIL).

Moscow has repeatedly been making the claim that Ankara buys oil from ISIL since Turkish jets shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border last week - instantly sparking a diplomatic dispute that has seen both sides wage a war of words through the media.

Turkey has vehemently denied the ISIL oil claims, with Erdogan saying again on Wednesday that he would resign from his post if they could be proved.

Russian officials held a press briefing in Moscow on Wednesday at which they showed satellite images, that they said showed columns of tanker lorries loading with oil at installations controlled by ISIL in Syria and Iraq, and then crossing the border into neighbouring Turkey.

Russian Deputy Defence Minister Anatoly Antonov went further, implicating President Erdogan's family in ISIL's oil supply chain.

"Turkey is the main consumer of the oil stolen from its rightful owners, Syria and Iraq. According to information we've received, the senior political leadership of the country - President Erdogan and his family - are involved in this criminal business," he said.

"Maybe I'm being too blunt, but one can only entrust control over this thieving business to one's closest associates."

"In the West, no one has asked questions about the fact that the Turkish president's son heads one of the biggest energy companies, or that his son-in-law has been appointed energy minister. What a marvellous family business!"

However, Al Jazeera's Rory Challands, reporting from Moscow, said that no specific evidence had been provided by Russian officials to prove their claims against the president. 

"Of course, this is not going to go down at all well in Ankara," he said.

Speaking in Doha, Erdogan responded to the new claims on Wednesday by saying that no one had a right to "slander" Turkey.

"Nobody has the right to slander Turkey by saying Turkey is buying Daesh oil," he said, using an Arabic acronym for ISIL.

Other Turkish government officials described the claims as baseless, while a senior official from the ruling AK Party founded by Erdogan said they were part of a narrative being spun for a Russian domestic audience.

Erdogan, however, pointed out that he did not want relations  between the two countries to get any worse.

Moscow and Ankara have been at loggerheads over the November 24 incident when Turkish jets shot down a Russian warplane - which Turkey claims illegally crossed into Turkish airspace.

Turkey has released a number of recordings which it claims prove that the warplane was warned repeatedly prior to being shot down.

Russia has hit back, slapping Turkey with a series of sanctions over the weekend - including bans on Turks' labour contract extensions, chartered flights from Russia to Turkey and tourism packages to Turkey.