Islamic State tries to shore up relevance with Iraq carnage

The Islamic State group (IS) has not gone away. The twin suicide bombing in Baghdad on Thursday was a hideous reminder that the group which once controlled a vast swathe of territory across Syria and Iraq is still capable of mounting high casualty attacks in the heart of a city.

In this case its target was the Shia community, whom Sunni jihadists refer to dismissively as rafidain - rejectionists.

"Suicide bombings in major cities have always been a major part of IS strategy of creating sectarian tension and provoking retribution against Sunni populations," says Peter Neumann, professor of security studies at King's College London.

"IS needs sectarian conflict, in which it can portray itself as a provider of order," he adds.