ISIS plans to issue its own currency
(Image credit: iStock)

The self-proclaimed Islamic State announced Thursday that it planned to start minting its own currency. The Islamist extremist group, which is using terrorism and ground warfare in a bid to establish a caliphate in Iraq and Syria, said the move would help it operate outside the "tyrant's financial system." ISIS said it would explain exchange rates and other details regarding the currency — two gold coins, three silver, and two copper — in a later statement. Read more at CNN.

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Harold Maass, The Week US

Harold Maass is a contributing editor at The Week. He has been writing for The Week since the 2001 debut of the U.S. print edition and served as editor of TheWeek.com when it launched in 2008. Harold started his career as a newspaper reporter in South Florida and Haiti. He has previously worked for a variety of news outlets, including The Miami Herald, ABC News and Fox News, and for several years wrote a daily roundup of financial news for The Week and Yahoo Finance.