The Islamic State – Sahel Province, formerly the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara, is an Islamic State affiliate that has claimed attacks across the Sahel. In 2020 the opening called it "the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara (IS-GS) is a terrorist militant group with a Salafi Jihadism ideology." Today the opening calls it simply "an Islamist militant group adhering to the ideology of Salafi Jihadism," and terror appears zero times in the opening, though it survives twenty-nine times in the article. A reader today learns the group's ideology, and not that Wikipedia's own opening once called it a terrorist group.
Read line by line and written up by hand.
Machine-checked against the full current article on 2026-08-01. “terror” appeared 3 times in this article's opening at its peak. Today the opening has none; the body has 29.
We saved snapshots of this article over twenty years; you are reading the 2020 one. Red dashes: removed from Wikipedia since.Pale dots: rewritten; the numbered note shows what it says now.Red text: written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot.1 tap a number or a side note to jump between them
The opening as it read in 2020
Islamic State in the Greater Sahara ( IS-GS ) is a terrorist militant group with a Salafi Jihadism ideology.1 ISIS-GS was formed on 15 May 2015 as the result of a split within the militant group Al-Mourabitoun . The rift was a reaction to the adherence of one of its leaders, Adnane Abou Walid al-Sahraoui , to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant .2Al-Mourabitoun was created on 22 August 2013 after the merging of MUJAO and El-Mouaguiine Biddam. On 13 May 2015, MUJAO pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in a statement by the group's leader, Walid al-Sarhaoui. It operated independently until 30 October 2016, when it was formally recognised by the Islamic State. In December 2015, about 100 militants pledged allegiance to the Islamic State in the Greater Sahara. The group's ranks increased by dozens of Mali militants and sympathizers from the Gao Region near Ménaka . On November 28, 2019, Spanish authorities issued a warning on the possibility of a terror attack in the region against Spanish citizens visiting or working in the Saharawi refugee camps in Western Sahara. Spanish authorities feared the attacks would coincide with the Spanish Día de la Constitución (December 6) celebrations. Secret services warned of the risk of a jihadist attack in the Sahara region at refugee camps in Tindouf , Algeria . "El-Mourabitoune appelle les autres groupes jihaidstes à prêter allégeance à l'Etat islamique (Audio)" . Radio France Internationale (in French). 31 October 2016 . Radio France Internationale (in French). 6 December 2015 . Radio France Internationale (in French). 23 February 2017 . "Los servicios secretos alertan del riesgo de atentado yihadista contra españoles en el Sáhara" . "Informes secretos alertan del riesgo de "atentado inminente" contra españoles en el Sáhara" .3
This is Wikipedia's own text, saved in our repository. Their copy of it is revision 943532289.
The opening as it stood on October 6, 2023 14 passages from the previous snapshot no longer appear
Islamist militia The Islamic State – Sahil Province ( ISSP ), formerly known as Islamic State in the Greater Sahara ( IS-GS ), is an Islamist militant group adhering to the ideology of Salafi Jihadism . IS-GS was formed on 15 May 2015 as the result of a split within the militant group Al-Mourabitoun . The rift was a reaction to the adherence of one of its leaders, Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahraoui , to the Islamic State . From March 2019 to 2022, IS-GS was formally part of the Islamic State – West Africa Province (ISWAP); when it was also called "ISWAP-Greater Sahara".In March 2022, IS declared the province autonomous, separating it from its West Africa Province and naming it Islamic State – Sahil Province (ISSP).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1177323560.
The opening as it stood in 2025
Islamic State affiliate The Islamic State – Sahel Province (ISSP) , formerly known as Islamic State in the Greater Sahara ( IS-GS ), is an Islamist militant group adhering to the ideology of Salafi Jihadism . IS-GS was formed on 15 May 2015 as the result of a split within the militant group Al-Mourabitoun . The rift was a reaction to the adherence of one of its leaders, Adnan Abu Walid al-Sahrawi , to the Islamic State . From March 2019 to 2022, IS-GS was formally part of the Islamic State – West Africa Province (ISWAP); when it was also called "ISWAP-Greater Sahara". In March 2022, IS declared the province autonomous, separating it from its West Africa Province and naming it Islamic State – Sahel Province (ISSP). "IS Reveals Attacks in Sokoto (Nigeria) and Tillaberi (Niger) in Naba 205 "Exclusive" " .There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or templates on this page, but the references will not show without a template or template (see the help page ).
Red text was written in or rewritten since the previous snapshot. Their copy is revision 1297615724. This is our newest snapshot; the live article may have moved again since.
Today
“terror” appeared 3 times in this article's opening at its peak. Today the opening has none; the body has 29. Read the current article and compare.
2020
Oct '23
2025
terror
2
0
0
militant
4
2
2
islamist
0
2
1
jihad
2
1
1
Counts in the opening at each snapshot. Green: the word gained ground. Red: it was cut. Grey: no change.
What Wikipedia says this is
Every article opens by defining its subject. This one was redefined between 2020 and 2025.
Then
terrorist militant group with a salafi jihadism ideology
Now
islamist militant group adhering to the ideology of salafi jihadism
Struck red text is no longer in the article; dotted amber text was rewritten. Every revision id links to Wikipedia's copy; the text shown is our own saved copy. Data: /data. Wikipedia text is CC BY-SA; quoted for the record; not affiliated with Wikipedia.
