The Islamic State in Iraq and Syria ISIS is no longer a state in name only It is a physical if extra legal reality on the ground Unacknowledged by the world community ISIS has carved a de facto state in the borderlands of Syria and Iraq STATE OF JIHAD THE REALITY OF THE ISLAMIC STATE IN IRAQ AND SYRIA The militants have already asserted a de facto Islamic state in those areas establishing their own courts schools and services Militants making headway in Iraq and Syria declare creation of formal Islamic state