Terrorism carried out by insurgent groups is a global issue w that requires to be addressed effectively. The Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) is a group found in the Sahara region of North Africa that has advanced terror in the region. Since its inception in 1998, the group (initially known as the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat, GSPC) has significantly grown and expanded as a major and extremist group based in Algeria (Poynting and Whyte 224). Reports indicate that in January 2006, the group officially became members of the Al-Qaeda group and assumed a new name Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). Currently the group leader is Abu Musad Abdel Wadoud who took over after the Chadian and French forces killed Mokhtar Belmokhtar and Abdelhamid Abou Zeid who were its commanders (Poynting and Whyte 224).
Membership
AQIM has over the years increased its membership from a few hundreds to a figure above 4000 adherents. It is important to note that the insurgent group mainly draws its members locally mainly from the Saharan communities, the Moroccans and Algerian citizens. Members from the Saharan community include individuals from Mali’s Berabiche tribal clans and the Tuaregs. According to White (413), this group has also had its members coming from the al-shabaab militia based in Somali.
Aims and Targets
The alliance that AQIM made with al-Qaeda has empowered its intentions to launch attacks to French, Spanish, European and Western targets. The European Union as well as the US Department of State designates AQIM as a foreign terrorist organization. Studies indicate that this group was behind the 2006/2007 improvised explosive devise attacks on cars, the UN office in Algeria and on foreign convoys.
Gus (36) explains that terror groups such as the Al-Qaida and AQIM are largely driven by the desire to maintain control of national systems. From the need to strengthen the state of Algeria, AQIM indicates that its main objective is elimination of the control of the west. In the Horn of Africa, recurrent fights by Al-Shaabab and AQIM terrorist groups are the maintenance of the states in which they belong.
Source of funding
It is notable that most of the warring groups like the Militia insurgents have strong economic and political backing that either directly or indirectly funds their operations. Besides, many of the funding individuals especially in the Middle East have strong affiliation to the multibillion oil businesses in the region therefore giving them the necessary impetus to foster production of highly inflaming, provocative, and destructive messages in an unregulated mode. Indeed, it is this reason that analysts have warned of possible escalation of terrorism globally if regulation of communication is not watched.
In the Horn of Africa, the AQIM’s major source of funding comes from member donations, massive kidnappings and extortions. Reports indicate that in the last decade, the group collected over $50 million through kidnap for ransom (Poynting and Whyte 224). Besides, the interplay of religion, politics and economics play a major part in ensuring the necessary impetus for the group to progress. Therefore, the pegged certainty of addressing the target for the group makes it to be highly effective and self-propelling.
Finally, the parametric criteria of assessing the success of a group inculcate the major differences of the government and the terrorists’ view on success. The AQIM uses this notion to woe Muslim sympathizers in North Africa in order to get into the holy war with a ‘common enemy’. This Al-Qaeda-inspiration denotes the fast changing realms of war which must be won. It is worth noting that due to the traditional setting of war, its balance was not just merely riddled but highly incompatible with the modern changes that make it inferior. A new method must therefore be projected at the base of the challenge to comprehend the sources of the problem.
Works Cited
Gus, Martin. The Sage encyclopaedia of terrorism. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publication, 2011. Print.
Poynting, Scott and David, Whyte. Counter-Terrorism and State Political Violence: The ‘war on terror’ as terror. Abingdon, OX: Routledge, 2012. Print.
On August 19, 2014, an online news network called Abu Dhabi Media released an editorial piece. It made the claim that it will require a multi-faceted approach to defeat the Islamic state. The author said that using military might, and going after their sources of funds, are unsustainable strategies, especially if these are used in isolation (The National, 2014). The author proposed that all conventional anti-terror schemes must be utilized, but there is need to create a multi-faceted solutions package to defeat terror groups like the ISIS. It is a practical recommendation, and it must be supported by the United Nations.
At first glance, it seems that a military solution is the most practical approach, because it can provide immediate results. Destroying enemy forces, capturing key leaders of terror groups, and eliminating murderers hiding behind extremist ideologies are examples of military actions that provide instant gratification for victims of terror groups. Nevertheless, a military initiative is not a sustainable solution to the said problem.
Military intervention may weaken the operational capability of terror groups; nonetheless, it does not stop new recruits from joining groups like Al Qaeda or ISIS. It is also important to attack the group’s source of funds. These groups will have no access to military hardware and communication equipment, if sources of funds will dry up. Without stable sources of funds, terror groups are unable to stay undetected, because they can no longer pay for the cost of maintaining a network of safe houses. Nevertheless, the use of firepower and economic sanctions are not enough to completely destabilize terror groups. It is also important to look at the personal component of the Islamic state.
Saudi Arabia and Kuwait participated in a UN Security Council resolution to cut-off financing for ISIS. However, these two countries went further by identifying supporters of terror groups. Thus, aside from the use of military forces, and economic sanctions, members of the United Nations must work together to develop a more effective, and comprehensive intelligence gathering protocol.
ISIS and other like-minded terrorist groups are founded on the tenets of radical ideology. Therefore, it is also imperative to slow down the group’s progress in the context of radical ideology. Members of the United Nations must commit to helping poor and underdeveloped communities. It is in poverty-stricken communities where terror groups are successful in recruiting new volunteers. Poor children and frustrated adults are more susceptible to the false ideas perpetuated by terror groups. Thus, citizens of rich countries must learn how to efficiently channel resources to poor communities that are known breeding ground for terrorists.
Conclusion
It is time to realize that conventional strategies in fighting terror groups are not sustainable in the long run. The use of military forces and economic sanctions can temporarily cripple terror groups. However, the fundamental issue is not only to prevent the next terror attack; it is also to limit the group’s capacity to attract new recruits, and increase their operational capability. Thus, aside from the use of military force and cutting-off financing, members of the United Nations must look at the personal component of terror groups. It is also imperative to introduce intervention strategies that will send volunteers into poor communities. Volunteers will provide economic aid. They will also educate people, and provide a counter-argument to the ideas planted by terror groups. It is only through a multi-faceted approach that one can be assured of victory against the Islamic State.
This paper argues that the rise of ISIS to its current prominence appears to serve the U.S. geopolitical agenda, and as such, it cannot be considered thoroughly phenomenological. In support of this idea, the paper provides a number of references to the web-based and printed sources of interest.
Introduction
One of the reasons to believe that the cause of ‘promoting democracy’ throughout the world can longer be considered a legitimate principle of the U.S. foreign policy, is because due to this policy’s practical implementation, the world became a much more dangerous place to live. This is something that can be illustrated, in regards to the emergence of the organisation ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant). The rationale behind this suggestion is quite apparent.
After all, there is a plenty of evidence available that the emergence of this monstrous organisation, which calls for the complete physical extermination of ‘infidels’ (including Muslims who do not agree with ISIS), is the direct consequence of this country’s current policy of supporting ‘fighters for freedom’ in Syria, which overwhelmingly consist of Islamic radicals of the worst kind. In this paper, I will aim to explore the validity of the above-stated at length, while referring to the discursively relevant web-based and printed articles, concerned with enlightening people as to what ISIS really is.
Context
As of today, the world has already learnt a great deal about ISIS, as the organisation that consists of nothing short of sadists, serial killers and sexual maniacs. After all, the reports of what account for the organisation’s murderous ‘feats’ continue to appear in the world’s Media on an almost daily basis. According to these reports, spreading the reign of senseless terror appears to be the only purpose of ISIS’s existence (Syria and Isis, 2014). In the areas of Syria and Iraq, controlled by ISIS, it became a commonplace practice, among the organisation’s members, to gang-rape women on a massive scale – something that world has not known ever since the time of the WW2.
What is even worse – the acts of sexual violence, perpetrated by ISIS, often concern underage children, (‘Barbaric’ sexual, 2014). The actual scale of the ongoing humanitarian disaster in Syria, which is being commonly linked with the continual functioning of ISIS, does provide a certain rationale to refer to it in terms of the, “Biggest humanitarian crisis we face today in the world” (Massive scale-up, 2014, para. 2). Thus, there can be only a few doubts that ISIS is nothing short of the embodiment of evil on this earth, and as such, this notorious organisation deserves to be destroyed.
The problem existed for about a year now, at least in the formal sense of this word. However, even as far back as two years ago, there were a number of signs that many of the so-called ‘fighters for freedom’ in Syria were about to create yet another extremist Islamic organisation. There can be a few doubts that the problem is indeed rather intensive.
The fact that almost every new day brings reports about the criminal acts of ISIS, validates this claim more than anything else does. As of today, the membership of ISIS is estimated to account for at least 20 thousands strong and it continues to grow (Sciutto, Crawford & Carter, 2014). ISIS is now appears to be in control of Eastern Syria and Western Iraq. The organisation’s members use a variety of different weapons. The bulk of it, however, consists of weapons ceased from the Iraqi army, which proved itself utterly inefficient opposing ISIS (Rubin & Gordon, 2014).
It appears that ISIS is being financially supported by certain circles in Saudi Arabia, interested in escalating violence in the Middle East. In addition, ISIS has been reported to operate a number of oilfields in Syria and Iraq (Mosendz, 2014). The organisation in question has firmly established itself in both of the mentioned countries. However, it continues to apply a great effort to spread its activities to other countries in the area, as well.
The following is the attempt to expose the true causes behind the emergence of ISIS. The task will be addressed within the format of a critical literature-review.
Body of the paper
As of today, we can speak of three major perspectives on the phenomenon of ISIS and on what are the main causes behind the organisation’s rise – American, European and that of the rest of the world.
According to the U.S. State Department spokespersons, ISIS appeared out of the blue and it represents just another target for American guided missiles. For example, even as recent as one year ago, the country’s top-officials did not only remain thoroughly arrogant, as to the existence of ISIS, but they kept on insisting that that the major ‘evil’ in the area, at that time, was the legitimate government of Al-Assad in Syria. In the year 2013, the State Department’s officials used to insist that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had attacked its own citizens with chemical weapons, which is why he needed to be removed from the office – regardless of what happened to be the stance of the U.N. Security Council, in this respect.
Back then, the U.S. considered al-Assad a ‘bloody dictator’, while providing Syrian ‘fighters for freedom’ (Islamic fanatics) with much needed, diplomatic, financial and even military support (hence, the ‘phenomenon’ of them having been armed much better than the opposing governmental troops). However, since the beheadings of a few Western hostages took place at the hand of ISIS, the U.S. began to realise that this organisation needs to be prevented from growing ever stronger. As of today, however, ISIS effectively replaced Al-Qaeda on the country’s list of ‘hit priorities’.
The validity of this suggestion can be illustrated, in regards to the fact that it is specifically the existence of ISIS, which America considers the justification for its would-be invasion of Syria: “ISIS has some known strongholds – in Raqqa, Syria, for example – which could be neutralised by airstrikes… But airstrikes have their limitations” (Masi, 2014, para. 4). The most notable aspect, within the context of how Americans go about explaining the rise of ISIS, is that this country’s officials do not even bother to sound logical. According to them, the rise of ISIS is a ‘mystery’ – as if America were not supporting Islamic fundamentalists in Syria up until 2014, out of which ISIS is being made (Leverett, 2014).
One should naturally assume that there should be a unified Arab perspective on what ISIS is all about, as well. This, however, is far from being the case. The reason for this is apparent – the organisation in question is closely affiliated with the Sunni version of Islam, which means that it could not possibly be favoured by Shiites. This is exactly the reason why ‘non-Sunni’ Muslims, such as those from Russia and Iran, strongly oppose ISIS. According to them, this organisation’s very existence, is an abomination to Islam.
The same cannot be said about Sunnis, because ISIS promotes the Islamic ideology of wahhabism, which in turn is closely related to the official religion of Saudi Arabia – Islamic Salafism. This partially explains how ISIS is being financed – Saudi Arabia’s ‘oil money’ is definitely at play, in this respect (Cockburn, 2014). This again points out to America’s complicity in the rise of ISIS – Saudi Arabia is the major ally of the U.S. in the Gulf. Nevertheless, given the fact that luxury-crazed ‘kings’ and ‘princes’ from the Gulf, supported by the U.S., are being intensively hated throughout the Muslim world, it can hardly be doubted that ISIS only formally relates to Islam – it has nothing to do with what this religion is all about.
Because of the earlier mentioned American and Arab perspectives on the rise of ISIS, one will assume that there should be the European one, as well. However, given the fact that most of the members of EU are also the members of NATO, controlled by the U.S., this perspective is not being much different from that of the ‘beacon of democracy’. This is the reason why, as it happened to be the case with their American counterparts, the EU top-officials refer to the rise of ISIS in the clearly defined phenomenological terms.
That is, according to them, no comprehensible explanation can be given, as to why this organisation continues to grow ever more powerful. The fact that the EU continues to support Islamic ‘fighters for freedom’ in Syria, which in turn helps ISIS in a variety of different ways, is not being mentioned. What appears particularly odd, in this respect, is that Europe itself in being gradually turned into one of the organisation’s bases. As Fisher noted, “A growing number of Europeans, often from predominantly Muslim immigrant communities, are not just expressing their support for ISIS in polls: they are traveling to Syria and Iraq to join up” (2014, para. 6).
Partially, the fact that the top-ranking bureaucrats from the EU act in the way as if Europe had nothing to do with the rise of ISIS, is related to the policy of ‘multiculturalism’, which has been enjoying the official status in Europe for about 20 years (Farrell & Baxter, 2014). Apparently, these individuals simply refuse to admit that is was namely due to the enactment of this policy that there are members of ISIS in just about every large European city. The reason for this is that, had they adopted a clearly defined anti-ISIS stance, this would result in undermining their chances to be reflected, as it is being only the matter of time, before Muslims become a majority in Europe.
Even though, as it was suggested earlier, the West prefer to ‘play dumb’, when it comes to defining the reasons behind ISIS’s rise, the rest of the world is perfectly aware of what were the actual reasons behind this organisation’s most recent successes. The following, represents the line of reasoning, deployed by people in the non-Western world, in regards to what should be considered the discursive significance of ISIS:
Ever since the allegations about Al-Assad having used chemical weapons turned out fallacious, the U.S needed to find another excuse to proceed with making plans for the ground-invasion of Syria – the emergence of ISIS came in handy, in this respect. Therefore, there is nothing odd about the fact that, as time goes on, more and more people begin to suspect that the phenomenon on ISIS cannot be discussed outside of what used to be the main objective of the U.S. foreign policy, for the duration of the last few decades – namely, setting as many ‘hot spots’ around the world, as possible.
What adds to this process an additional momentum is that there are a number of proofs that the origins of ISIS can be traced to the CIA – just as it happened to be the case with the origins of Al-Qaeda. In its turn, this explains why there are “conspiracy theories… circulating from the streets of Baghdad to the highest levels of Iraqi government that the C.I.A. is secretly behind the same extremists that it is now attacking” (Kirkpatrick, 2014, para. 1).
It simply could not be otherwise – as it was mentioned earlier, it has only been one year, since the U.S. State Department’s officials used to find it thoroughly appropriate pledging their full support to the Syrian ‘freedom fighters’, who at the time posed eating the hearts of their killed enemies on camera, and who later created ISIS. As Vladimir Putin noted, “President Obama spoke about the Islamic State (ISIS) as one of the threats. But who helped to arm the people who were fighting Assad in Syria?
Who created a favourable political and informational climate for them? Who pushed for arms supplies?” (Meeting, 2014, para. 65). The above-mentioned may well make one wonder why the U.S. would be interested in destabilising the world by the mean of organising the so-called ‘orange’ revolutions throughout the world (Tunis, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Ukraine), which in turn result in the creation of such monstrous organisations as ISIS?
It can be speculated that the answer to this question has to do with the fact that, by the year 2019, the U.S. budget-deficit is expected to reach $18 trillion. What it means is that America will continue finding it increasingly harder to ensure the investing appeal of the so-called ‘The U.S treasury bonds’, sold to the third parties (such as China and Russia) – the practice that is currently preventing the collapse of the country’s economy, due to hyperinflation (Hudson, 2008).
For America, there is only one way out of this situation – trying to sow the seeds of chaos in as many countries, as possible, while paying a particular attention to the resource-rich ones. The reason for this is perfectly clear – in times of instability, investors prefer dealing with whatever happened to be the world’s most stable currency, which continues to remain the U.S. Dollar – even though it has been de facto devalued long time ago (Norfield, 2011).
Whatever ISIS does, is not consistent even slightly with the religious provisions of Islam. However, if one was to apply the ancient inquisitive principle cui bono? (to whose benefit?), the mentioned illogicality would make perfectly good sense – ISIS serves the double-purpose of legitimatising the intended invasion of Syria by the U.S., on one hand, and dehumanising Muslims, in general, on the other. As it was pointed out by the anonymous author, “ISIS exists… (to) sway public opinion to favour the invasion of countries in the Middle East” (ISIS, 2014, para. 3).
Partially, this explains the cheer ineffectiveness of the U.N., within the context of how it strives to lessen the extent of the ISIS-related humanitarian crisis in Syria and Iraq (Relief efforts, 2014). This, of course, suggests that, despite all the politically correct rhetoric, heard from politicians in the West, it is not people’s irrational hatred/religious fanaticism, which ultimately results in the creation of organisations like ISIS, but the continuing fierce competition for the limited natural resources between the world’s most powerful countries.
Conclusion
I believe that the earlier provided line of argumentation, in defence of the idea that there are naturally occurring conspirological overtones to just about every analytical discussion of ISIS, is fully consistent with the paper’s initial thesis.
Analysis of the Literal Collection Disciplines Available
The problem posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is posing a serious security threat not only to the people in the Middle East but also to the entire world (Murphy, 2005). The recent attacks in Paris, France are a clear indication that this terror outfit has no geographical boundary and can strike anywhere. The United States, and other world powers, therefore, need to find effective ways of dealing with this threat in a way that is effective.
To do this, it is necessary to gather intelligence. There are several literal collections of disciplines which are available and can help in gathering initial intelligence about this group. There are newspaper reports, television and radio news reports, and video recordings that these terrorists make from time to time when making demands or issuing threats. These literal collections can be used to gather initial intelligence that can be used to effectively crash this group. These collections can help in explaining how this group conducts its activities and the strategies it uses when planning an attack.
The specific targets
Islamic State, just like Al Qaeda, Boko Haram, and Al Shabbab, operate clandestinely, and gathering intelligence about them is not easy. They are always very keen to cover their tracks and they use different tactics to do this. They can kill those whom they believe can reveal their activities or the whereabouts of their top leaders. As such, when choosing the specific targets of sources of information that will be used, it is necessary to put into consideration these facts. The best target source will be television reports. According to Gerdes (2004), sometimes these terrorists often invite television journalists to interview them.
The reports from such an interview can help investigators to understand the plans of these terrorists. The video recordings that they often send to the newsrooms can also help to give a picture of the places that they use to hide. The international intelligence bodies such as Secrete Service can use drones to monitor the activities of these terror groups and gather relevant information about their operations. Gathered together, these facts can be used to guide an offensive against this dangerous terror group.
Plausible choices of published, internet or HUMINT technique
Islamic State is one of the most complex terror groups whose operations cannot be easily understood. It is necessary to use multi-disciplinary sources to gather intelligence from them. As mentioned above, published sources such as newspaper reports, television and radio news, relevant magazines, among others may be useful in understanding this group. The internet is also another reliable source that cannot be ignored. With the emergence of social media such as Facebook and YouTube, sometimes these terrorists may not need to contact the newsroom when they want to communicate to the international community.
All they have to do is to upload their recorded video on YouTube or Facebook and the information will reach their intended audience. As Goldman (2014) says, when making these video records, these terrorists often leave a trail of evidence that can be used to track them. It may be the background that may be used to identify the location of the recording. It may be the voice or possibly the face of those making the records that can be used to identify their real identity. A critical analysis of these videos often makes it possible to know more about their location and the identity of these criminals.
It will also be necessary to use the Human Intelligence (HUMINT) technique to gather more facts about this group (Tipton, Tipton, & Corroney 2008). After knowing about their possible locations, the international security forces can send their agents to act as suppliers of some of the items that these terrorists often use. They can pose as suppliers of arms, ammunition, foodstuffs, clothes, or any other stuff that is commonly used by these people. These agents will be required to work closely with them, win their trust so that they can infiltrate the leadership. This will make it easy to eliminate this terror group from top to bottom.
How to sequence collection for best results
The best results collected will be stored in a sequence from the simple common facts which are in the public domain to top secretes which are highly classified. This is so because each piece of intelligence will help in getting more facts about the group. The newest information gathered will help in getting even more information about this terror group. The sequencing is important because the team of investigators will know the information which is most current about the group instead of using a poorly structured data system.
Management issues to be prepared to address
When gathering intelligence about this dangerous terror outfit, several management issues must be addressed to get the desired outcome. The first issue is the human resource that will be used in this project. Collecting information from terrorists is not easy, and not many people may be interested in undertaking this activity. It will be necessary to recruit agents who are very intelligent and willing to take the risk. They must be taken through rigorous training before they are allowed to go into the field. Another issue of management is the coordination of all the involved parties. Different teams of employees will be undertaking different activities, but they must be closely coordinated to ensure that they share critical information to help them in their tasks. Finally, another management issue will be to make available all the materials that the entire team may need to accomplish their duties.
Alternate collection strategy if the assets requested are not available
As mentioned previously, to monitor the activities of this group closely, it will be necessary to use drones. Special cameras can be mounted on these drones to have an aerial view of their activities. This makes it easy to have a better knowledge of the kind of preparations they make because this way, it is possible to understand their plans. The team has also requested a team of special agents from some of the elite forces in the United States.
These agents will get in contact with the terrorists and gather human intelligence (HUMINT) (McCue, 2006). However, it is a fact that this team may fail to get the requested assets because of one reason or another. In case the Special Forces are not available, then the HUMINT strategy will be eliminated because it is a very delicate strategy that has numerous risks and requires experts. In the absence of the drones, the use of imagery intelligence (IMINT) will also be affected. The team will emphasize on the use of published and internet sources to gather the needed information. A critical analysis of the terrorists’ owns publications may help monitor their activities and know their plans well in advance.
The strategy for collection in the literal intelligence disciplines
The strategy that will be used in the collection of intelligence will follow the sequence that has been described in the section above. As Dulles (2006) says, in every investigative process, it is always important to start from what is already known towards what is not yet known to the masses. For that matter, the team of investigators will gather available facts about this group from books, journal articles, newspapers, television and radio news reports, and internet sources.
The team will start by documenting when and how this terror group was founded, the initial members, their initial vision when starting this group, and the changes that have occurred over time. This initial information will help the team to understand what it should expect when it gets into the ground. After gathering information about its background, the team will then start digging facts about its every activity in recent times. These facts will then be compiled in a sequence from the oldest to the most recent. If the assets requested are available, the team will use drones to collect further information about this terror group. The final stage will be to gather human intelligence by sending agents to directly interact with them. This information can then be used by the security forces to bring down the organization.
References
Dulles, A. (2006). The Craft of Intelligence: America’s Legendary Spy Master on the Fundamentals of Intelligence Gathering for a Free World. Guilford, Conn: The Lyons Press. Web.
Gerdes, L. (2014). Espionage and Intelligence Gathering. London, England: McMillan Publishers. Web.
Goldman, J. (2014). The Central Intelligence Agency: An encyclopedia of covert ops, intelligence gathering, and spies. New York, NY: Cengage. Web.
McCue, C. (2006). Data Mining and Predictive Analysis: Intelligence Gathering and Crime Analysis. Boston, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann. Web.
Murphy, C. (2005). Competitive Intelligence: Gathering, Analysing and Putting It to Work. Aldershot, England: Gower. Web.
Tipton, S., Tipton, D., & Corroney, J. (2008). Intelligence Gathering. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley & Sons. Web.
ISIL is currently posing the biggest threat to global security and stability. Various nations have tried using a variety of methods to try to contain the group’s reign of terror. This brief is addressed to the director of a Crisis Action Centre and it concerns budget priorities in the fight against ISIL. The report starts with an introduction to the ISIL threat and then proceeds to highlight the organization’s main strengths and weaknesses. The brief advises on, which intelligence collection strategies should be prioritized and the ones that can be relegated.
Introduction
The unprecedented rise of the Islamic State (ISIL/ISIS) and its accompanying threat has become a pertinent issue in the security interests of Europe, the United States, and the world at large. Our country has been directing a significant amount of resources towards overpowering the advancements of the terrorist organization. In the fight against the ISIL, the central issue of increasing extremism and subsequent radicalization of citizens around the world. Furthermore, all players in the fight against ISIL have been trying to figure out the enemy’s vulnerabilities. Consequently, a successful intelligence campaign against ISIL requires the marshaling of all available resources (Lowenthal, 2014).
Previously, the intelligence incursion against ISIL was mostly haphazard because very little was known about the organization especially during its unprecedented and fast rise in the Middle East. Most intelligence outfits also made the mistake of assuming that the terror group was similar to pre-existing terrorist cells. The peripheral nature of the Western-styled intelligence outfits has also contributed to a significant wastage of resources in the fight against ISIL.
Recent developments in the economic front have led to significant budget cuts that have subsequently affected the operations of the Crisis Action Team (CAT). As a collection strategist, I must outline how the team can operate within the confines of the new budget requirements whilst maintaining a sustained offensive against the terrorist organization. My brief is centered on how non-literal intelligence can be utilized in the context of the new budget cuts to achieve maximum results in the war against ISIL. The brief will be addressed to the director and it will indicate which intelligence collection should be prioritized and which ones require reduced attention. The recommendations also take into consideration the current state of ISIL risk.
ISIL in its Current State
The complexity that comes with gathering intelligence against the ISIL has been replicated across the world. No major player has shown distinguished progress in the intelligence front when it comes to ISIL. At a certain point, the terror organization appears to be beating the collective global intelligence by continuing to hit even the most impregnable targets such as France and Brussels. Consequently, it would be futile to approach the problem of ISIL using the old intelligence rulebooks and tactics. ISIL has started a pattern of operation that has proved difficult to decipher. In this regard, ISIL has proved more efficient in discarding any ‘modus operandi’ that is susceptible to instruments of intelligence.
Other terrorist organizations such as the Al Qaeda have not fared well in this regard hence the need to re-evaluate the older counter-extremist strategies. It is also important to note that one of ISIL’s strengths is its ability to attract and radicalize elements from around the world (Dyer, McCoy, Rodriguez, & Van Duyn, 2007). The organization’s global stature has been a challenge when it comes to the scope of intelligence strategies that can be effective against the organization. Most extremist organizations rely on finances as a source of power. However, ISIL has found other means of harnessing power through acts of unimaginable terror, ruthlessness, and sustained campaigns. This aspect of ‘intangible’ power is a major determinant of the intelligence strategies that can be most effective against ISIL.
Collection Strategies
The use of measurement and signature intelligence (MASINT) should be a key priority for the CAT. MASINT is the only method of intelligence collection that can counter ISIL’s ability to “control people and territory through a well organized and pragmatic leadership, intimidation tactics, well-developed narrative, and sustained media outreach that attracts and motivates fighters” (Childs, 2015, p. 20).
At this point in the campaign against ISIL, it is evident that the ruthlessness and moral decadence of the organization has no limits. The most logical thing would be to access how much capacity the organization has and its potential to increase this intelligence. Therefore, a sizeable budget allocation should address this aspect of the ISIL campaign. Nevertheless, MASINT is an expensive intelligence strategy because it utilizes data from other forms of collection including electronic, telemetry, and imagery-based intelligence among others. Currently, ISIL is an unmistakable threat to global security and its access to any form of weaponry and tactics should not be in doubt.
On the other hand, ISIL is under siege from a bombardment of various military units. This scenario makes the terrorist organization both a wounded and desperate unit. Therefore, the group can easily be used as a proxy by any other unit around the world that might have access to modern and sophisticated weaponry.
There have been rumblings that ISIL cells in Libya might have access to nuclear weapons that previously belonged to the Muamar Gadaffi Regime. This claim is yet to be verified until now hence the urgency to deploy resources towards MASINT. If this claim is true, ISIL could end up being a bigger global security threat than the world has anticipated. On the other hand, having credible intelligence to refute this claim can add precision to the war against ISIL. Through the use of MASINT, CAT can be able to gauge which types of weapons are in ISIL’s control and their subsequent capabilities. This method can also be used to find out the reasons and the resources behind the terror organization’s massively successful recruitment campaign around the world.
The use of imagery intelligence (IMNT) can be effective in undermining ISIL’s major weakness. Over the past few years, it has become clear that ISIL is an opportunistic organization that can only thrive in places where there is sectarian violence. The group’s claim to prominence can be traced to the Taliban war in Iraq and the subsequent effects of Arab Springs in Libya and Syria (Tinnes, 2015). Unlike the Al Qaeda, the ISIL also thrives in areas where there is no surveillance by enemy forces. The group has made sure of this free reign by “alienating local populations through over-the-top violence and harsh implementation of Sharia” (Tomes, 2015, p. 61).
Furthermore, the group has been unable to thrive in regions that have functioning governments. All these shortcomings can be exploited through the use of imagery intelligence to chart the movement of the organization and the structures of its leadership. On the other hand, the group has made sure that its territory is too risky for many potential surveillance spies (Richelson, 2015). Nevertheless, the terrorist group is aware of the risk of potential surveillance. The benefits and potential of IMNT are well documented throughout the history of intelligence collection. Data from IMNT can also be used to build on other intelligence collection strategies. CAT cannot afford to cut back on this form of surveillance because it is also one of the cheapest modes of intelligence collection.
The use of Electronic Intelligence (ELINT) and Foreign Instruments Signals Intelligence (FISINT) are both low priority strategies when it comes to collecting data against the ISIL. The ISIL exists in a flaccid condition and the organization has only managed to progress quickly by chance and not by design. Nevertheless, ELINT would be more effective than FISINT because the organization has indicated a reliance on the internet when communicating.
Also, the group has been relying heavily on the internet to recruit new members. One reason why ELINT might not be successful as an intelligence strategy is because its ability to achieve results is unlikely. The internet is a universe in its own right and this gives potential terrorists endless methods of communication. FISINT should be the least prioritized mode of intelligence collection because ISIL mostly operates in stateless areas.
Conclusion
CAT needs to access the ISIL threat in a unique but open-minded manner. The group’s realm of terror has mostly been incidental and this has caught most intelligence outfits unawares. Furthermore, the most important aspect of the war against ISIL is the need to gauge the threat that the group poses. MASINT is an all-round collection strategy that is very pertinent to the current threat against ISIL. The current budget cannot afford to overlook the basic necessity of imagery intelligence in ISIL’s main areas of operation. However, ELINT and FISINT remain low priority intelligence-collection strategies when it comes to the current ISIL threat.
References
Childs, S. (2015). Pure manipulation: ISIL and the exploitation of social media. Australian Army Journal, 12(1), 20-21. Web.
Dyer, C., McCoy, R. E., Rodriguez, J., & Van Duyn, D. N. (2007). Countering violent Islamic extremism: A Community responsibility. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, 76(12), 3-8. Web.
Lowenthal, M. M. (2014). Intelligence: From secrets to policy. Washington: CQ Press. Web.
Richelson, J. T. (2015). The US intelligence community. New York: Westview Press. Web.
Tinnes, J. (2015). Bibliography: The Islamic State (ISIS). Perspectives on Terrorism, 9(4). 1-42. Web.
Tomes, R. R. (2015). Socio-cultural intelligence and national security. Parameters, 45(2), 61-62. Web.
The research question is, What are the differences between the ISIS approaches to men and women on the Internet? The question will be addressed through reviewing the literature on and topic and conducting research of the ISIS gender-specific propaganda strategies.
Research Hypothesis
The primary hypothesis of the research is that the approaches employed by the ISIS for online communication activities such as propaganda and recruiting are gender-specific, i.e. different for male and female targets. The hypothesis will be considered confirmed if particular online communication strategies are found that are targeted at women specifically. The second hypothesis is that ISIS’s online communication techniques aimed at women feature the themes of romanticizing, emancipation, and participating in a ‘holy war’ on the side of good. The third hypothesis is that the ISIS extensively uses misrepresentation as a tool of online communication, i.e. the way the role and position of women in the ISIS presented in the terrorists’ online communication are significantly different from the real situation. Proving or disproving the hypotheses will help understand how the ISIS gains supporters among women as well as radicalizes and recruits them.
Literature Review
Several studies over the last five years focused on the strategies that terrorist recruiters adopt to attract supporters, radicalize them, and persuade them to join terrorist groups. The ISIS and other militant extremist organizations recognize the Internet as a valuable platform for various types of activities, including not only recruiting but also training, sharing coded plans of actions and attacks, and engaging “lone wolves” into organized networks of cooperation (Theohary 2011).
However, the primary function of the cyberspace for terrorists is to be a propaganda machine, i.e. to be used to disseminate information, which is often false or distorted, and persuade targets to support or join. For example, Taliban and Al Qaeda used Facebook pages and YouTube channels to “radicalize Western-based sympathizers” (Theohary 2011, 2). The ISIS has employed similar strategies. Researchers have concluded that the work of the ISIS on the web has been successful, as a recent report by a United States anti-terrorist organization stated that the ISIS was winning the war in social networking services (Ali 2015). There are many ways to analyze the propagandistic content generated by terrorist groups. One of them is to consider the gender specificity.
ISIS Approach to Men: How the ISIS Appeals to Men
According to Arendt (2012), a world-renowned international relations theorist, totalitarianism is dependent on the effective spread of propaganda (Arendt 2012). She uses the example of Adolf Hitler and the rise of the Nazis. Hitler managed to radicalize the youth and normalize violent behaviors to the point that anti-Semitism became a norm, rather than an exception. The ISIS employs the same tactics on the Internet for gender-appealing purposes. The organization performs as a militant group that aims to establish a state with a brutal and violent agenda of expansion.
This would not have occurred without achieving their primary goal, which is increasing and reinforcing their army, and the cyberspace seems to fit very well as a recruitment medium for the terrorist group to mechanize. Therefore, they convey messages through the web to men, and the messages that Islamist terrorist organizations convey to male targets are based on the notions of jihad, i.e. holy war. One of the main arguments of the ISIS is that Muslims are oppressed and persecuted in the modern world. In this situation, what a true believer should do, according to the ISIS propaganda, is to take up arms and fight. The ideology underlying jihad is highly radicalized and extremist as it suggests violence against infidels and oppression of the disobedient (Beauchamp 2014).
The idea of the holy war is communicated online in an exaggerated and highly dramatic way. The military campaign conducted by the ISIS is presented to targets as “a cosmic battle” (Speckhard 2014, 26), where the duty of a true believer is to fight on the side of good. Psychologists claim that such messages activate the “end times mentality” (Speckhard 2014, 29), which facilitates the radicalization as it makes a regular person act extraordinarily and change his or her life and thinking dramatically. Terrorists recruit male supporters to turn them into fighters and bombers.
Other scholars suggest that terrorist organizations that approach young men effectively use the process of ‘identity searching” and manipulate their messages accordingly. As young men try to find their life paths and choose religious or philosophical beliefs, they can fall into the trap being attracted by radical but simple messages of the ISIS if they lack critical thinking abilities. The system of recruitment becomes more intense as the ISIS spreads its messages on websites and social networks. Recruiters communicating with young men analyze if a man is ready for action in propaganda or subversive activities (Koerner, 2016). The ISIS, like many other terrorist groups, proposes clear gender values: a real man is a warrior who fights evil, and this archetypical concept is still attractive for a lot of people. If men are willing to join the war, they buy a ticket to Jordan or Turkey, and then cross the border with Syria and infuse the ranks of terrorists.
According to Mullen (2015), the “ISIS provides these deluded young men…with an adventurous trip.” Furthermore, the ISIS uses its discourse based on familiar historical patterns. Uncompromising idealism draws radical Western men since the average age of volunteers is 17 to 25 years. They are mainly descendants of immigrants in the second or third generation who were educated but faced the problems of ambivalence in a family environment and school. At this critical level, the ISIS seizes this moment to offer a more “heroic” position and compensation of how to appeal to men on the Internet (Callimachi 2016). The idea of a utopian country where all injustice will be avenged and problems will be solved grows and develops on the basis of a powerful propaganda machine in social media. The ISIS gives men a lot of feelings that these men may lack living in the environment where they live: brotherhood, justice, and, what is more important, the feeling of great importance of one’s actions and the meaningless of life.
ISIS Approach to Women: How the ISIS Appeals to Women
Although the idea of the holy war is communicated by terrorists to female targets as well as to male ones, there are certain distinct characteristics of the approach to women. To understand them, the profiles of women who join the ISIS should be described, their motivation should be examined, and the ISIS’s methods of recruitment and language of communication should be analyzed.
Profiles
First, it is important to consider the female recruitment rate and understand who the women joining the ISIS are. The academic community admits that there is not enough information on women who join the ISIS and declares the necessity for further research. According to Nacos (2015), experts on terrorism believe that there is an upward trend of joining the terrorist organization among women from all over the world. Particularly, some Western girls and women gave up their comfortable lives and left their families and friends to take part in the holy war. According to the data from counter-terrorist organizations, about 50 girls from the United Kingdom and at least 40 women from Germany had joined the terrorists by 2014 after being convinced online to come to the ISIS and marry a young fighter (Sherwood et al. 2014).
Some of them were 13-16 years old and escaped from their parents to travel to the Middle East. Others were up to 24 years old, some with careers and families. According to Perešin (2015), over 550 Muslim women from Western countries joined the ISIS and traveled to the territories controlled by it. The ISIS, therefore, has demonstrated the highest Western women recruitment rate among all known extremist groups (Perešin 2015). Although it was suggested by Speckhard (2014) that women and girls liable to terrorist propaganda are usually those who have been traumatized and experienced difficulties with their families and communities, actual data show that the profiles of female recruits are diverse, which complicates defining common factors.
Motivation
Second, one of the main goals of the ISIS female recruitment studies is identifying the motivation of women and girls who join the terrorists. Besides the previously discussed romanticized idea of the holy war, three motivations specific to women were described in the academic literature: looking for romance, supporting the Islamic State in non-combatant roles, and emancipation. Young women who join the ISIS often do so to marry a fighter (Sherwood et al. 2014). They are attracted by the idea of adventure and meeting courageous warriors to become their brides (Dettmer 2014).
The power of the social networking services used by the ISIS to romanticize the images of jihadists is emphasized by Nacos (2015, 1) as she claims that social media are capable of “turning some impressionable girls and young women into fans of the Islamic State and its fighters, just as entertainment media turn some of their peers into passionate fans of pop music stars or movie celebrities.” After joining the ISIS, young women are promised the meaningful life of non-militant participation in the holy war by being wives and mothers of warriors (Perešin and Cervone. 2015). Finally, some women who participate in the terrorist group see it as emancipation. Kneip (2016, 88) argues that women who join the ISIS “are still acting within a strongly patriarchal system” which means that their participation cannot be regarded as emancipation from the Western point of view.
However, it can be perceived as such by the victims of the terrorist propaganda. Particularly, what the ISIS provides is perceived by them as the emancipation from the Western society. Although some women joined the ISIS to combat infidels, violence and female jihad were not found to be major motivations (Pearson 2015). However, the exploration of these motivations is also deemed important. For instance, the case of Roshonara Choudhry, the first woman from the United Kingdom to be pronounced guilty of violent Islamist actions, is a major example of radicalization and female jihad. Pearson (2015) concludes that violent behavior was caused by the conflict of Choudhry’s online and offline identities. In turn, the reason for the conflict was the transgression of gender roles both in the mainstream society and the extremist radicalized online community.
Methods
Finally, the methods used by the ISIS to lure girls and women into joining them were widely discussed in the academic literature. Analysis of Dabiq, the propagandistic online magazine published by the ISIS, showed that the frequency of mentioning words related to “females concern” had been growing since the end of 2014 (Vergani and Bliuc 2015), which can signify an increasing interest of the terrorists in attracting and recruiting women. One of the techniques employed by them is befriending young women online and extensively exchanging messages with them. Binetti (2015) compares this online recruiting strategy to that used by pedophiles. Two main techniques are the alienation of parents and promoting the feeling of secrecy. The next step is convincing the victims that they are beautiful and special. Like the victims of child sexual exploitation, victims of extremist propaganda fail to recognize that they, in fact, are victims and are being used.
Another technique is creating a false image of the role of women in the ISIS. Beauchamp (2014, 3) states that the “ISIS is dedicated to oppressing women, and uses rape as a weapon to terrify the population into submission in territory it controls. Somehow, perversely, it has managed to enlist large numbers of women to help in that awful effort.” Terrorists declare that women are not mistreated in the ISIS and describe the “joys of sisterhood” (Binetti 2015, 2) among women in the Islamic State. However, when women are recruited and come to the ISIS, they may be forced to join female battalions, whose function is to force other women into obedience (Beauchamp 2014).
The technique of false representation is heavily used on all levels of the ISIS propaganda, including Dabiq magazine (Gambhir 2014). Such false representation is possible due to the two main aspects of communications performed by the ISIS: isolation and distortion (Ali 2015). First of all, the ISIS completely shuts down the territories under its control in terms of information flows. Journalists are not allowed to enter those territories, and if they do, they are running a risk of being kidnapped. Second, the ISIS has made a significant effort to set up its propaganda machine to distort the representation of the state and the ideology. The distorted concepts are further communicated to people all over the world through social networking services and other online channels. The purpose is to present an idealized image of the land of justice and to call upon supporters to fight.
Conclusion
According to the findings of previous studies, one of the main aspects of the ISIS’s communication to women and girls is conveying a romanticized image of what the group is and for what it fights. Gaining victims’ trust is based on the principles of secrecy and alienation of parents/circles, which often leads to a situation where a victim does not perceive herself as a victim and does not understand that she is being used. The injustice of the society in which a woman or a girl lives is also stressed by online recruiters to promote the idea that joining the ISIS will be liberating and emancipating. At the same time, the recruiters thoroughly hide or obscure the truth about what the role of women in the ISIS is and how women are treated there. Researchers agree that further efforts are needed to examine the ISIS recruiting strategy and find ways to combat them.
Bibliography
Ali, Mah-Rukh. 2015. “ISIS and Propaganda: How ISIS Exploits Women.” Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism 1 (2): 1–25.
Arendt, Hannah. 2012. Antisemitism: Part one of the origins of totalitarianism. HoughtonMifflin Harcourt.
Beauchamp, Zack. 2014. “The 9 Biggest Myths about ISIS.”Vox Media 1 (1). Web.
Binetti, Ashley. 2015. “A New Frontier: Human Trafficking and ISIS’s Recruitment of Women from the West.”Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security 1 (1). Web.
Nadje Al-Ali 2005, “Reconstructing Gender: Iraqi women between dictatorship, war, sanctions and occupation,” Third World Quarterly: 26 (4-5), 739 – 758.
Pearson, Elizabeth. 2015. “The Case of Roshonara Choudhry: Implications for Theory on Online Radicalization, ISIS Women, and the Gendered Jihad.”Policy & Internet 9 (1): 1–29.
Perešin, Anita, and Alberto Cervone. 2015. “The Western muhajirat of ISIS.” Studies in Conflict & Terrorism 38 (7): 495–509.
Perešin, Anita. 2015. “Fatal attraction: Western Muslimas and ISIS.”Perspectives on Terrorism 9 (3): 21–38.
Sherwood, Harriet, Sandra Laville, Kim Willsher, Ben Knight, Maddy French, and Lauren Gambino, “Schoolgirl Jihadis: The Female Islamists Leaving Home to Join Isis Fighters,” The Guardian, 2014.
Speckhard, Anne. 2015. Bride of ISIS: One Young Woman’s Path into Homegrown Terrorism. McLean: Advances Press.
Sylvester, Christine. 2002 “Feminist International Relations: An Unfinished Journey, “Interactions of Feminism and International Relations” Cambridge University Press: 287-316.
Theohary, Catherine A. 2011. Terrorist Use of the Internet: Information Operations in Cyberspace. Collingdale: Diane Publishing.
Vergani, Matteo, and Ana-Maria Bliuc. 2015. “The evolution of the ISIS’ language: A quantitative analysis of the language of the first year of Dabiq magazine.” Sicurezza, Terrorismo e Società 2 (1): 7–20.
In the modern world, terrorism has become a global threat regardless of the different nation’s economic, social and religious settings. Some of the dangerous terrorist organizations in the 21st Century include ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant), Al-Queda, Boko Haram, The Taliban and Al-Nusra Front. These organizations are actively involved in terror activities across the globe using different kinds of weapons with an objective of achieving certain motives (Dimovski, Ilijevski, Babanoski, & Rusumanov, 2016). This report focuses on the ISIS terrorist group, discussing its motives, weapons, and capabilities, where it is located and United States tracks it, its crimes as well as the countermeasures that can counter and combat this group.
Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) Terrorist Organization
The terrorist group ISIS was founded by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2014 as a splinter group of al-Qaeda. It is also known as the Islamic State and Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) or Islamic State (IS). The group controls Northern regions of Iraq and Western regions of Syria where it has established its government that employs brutality and the Sharia Law in its rule. The group’s fighters come from all parts of the world and they are encouraged to join the group for them to enjoy heaven on earth. IS’s objective is it to come up with an Islamic state referred to as a caliphate across Syria, Iraq and other parts of the Muslim world. It also intends to declare military, political and religious authority over these regions. IS has an apocalyptic vision that makes them hold the belief that they will usher in paradise by capturing specific physical territories in the area (Gatehouse, Khan, & Friscolanti 2015).
Weapons and Capabilities of ISIS
Gatehouse et al., (2015) provide that ISIS have both light and heavy weapons. The light arms include different kinds of rockets, anti-tank missiles and launchers, mortars and anti-craft weapons. Some of the heavy arms and advanced technology at the disposal of ISIS include dozens of Soviet-manufactured tanks, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), BMP-2 infantry fighting vehicles, planes and self-propelled artillery. In 2014, ISIS was also reported to have used chemical weapons in Ayn al-Arab (Kobanî) attacks as indicated by symptoms of its victims. Simpson (2014) claims that a large number of weapons that ISIS owns were obtained through looting from the armies of Iraq and Syria. Other weapons were seized from rebel groups in Syria or purchased from Iraq, Syria or abroad.
For example, it managed to capture arms and ammunition from the American army such as M16 rifles. ISIS is considered to the richest terrorist group globally implying that it has strong financial capabilities. Most of the oil and gas fields in Syria and some oilfields in Iraq are under the control of the organization. It also gets revenues from various criminal activities such as collection of taxes from local citizens, extortion of money in the form of protection fees from locals. Other revenues are from taxes from non-Muslims, ransoms from kidnappings and donations from wealthy individuals and groups. The number of IS operatives in 2014 estimated to be 25,000 with 12,000 coming from Syria and Iraqi and more than 13,000 coming from Western and Arab countries (Skousen, Mason, & Cromwell, 2015).
Location of ISIS and how the U.S tracks it
The organization is mainly located in Western Syria and Nothern Iraqi. The US tracks both IS recruits entering and leaving Syria and Western. The U.S’s counterterrorism strategy against ISIS has been degrading and ultimately destroying the group. The group posts various videos on social media, and the US has benefited from such posts to track its militants through its Air Force Intelligence. The U.S military has undertaken more than 150 successful airstrikes on the group through targeted action. Other approaches the U.S has used to fight the group include conducting systematic attacks against it using collected intelligence. It has also increased support to ground forces fighting ISIS by providing improving intelligence as well as strengthening their defense (Obama, 2014).
Crimes committed by ISIS
The terror group has been involved in killing dozens of individuals in single incidences and performing public crucifixions, executions of the religious minority. It has also committed other brutal acts such as raping and forcing young girls into marriage. According to United Nations and Amnesty International, the group is answerable for war crimes, human rights abuses, and large-scale ethnic cleansing in northern Iraq (Skousen et al., 2015).
Countermeasures for Combating the ISIS
Counterterrorism measures for the fight against ISIS can be derived from the United Nations strategic framework for fighting terrorism. The framework is based on four pillars including dealing with conditions that are likely to promote the spread of terror. Secondly, thwarting and fighting terrorist activities through various efforts. Thirdly building the capacity of nations enabling them to prevent and combat terrorism. Lastly, the fundamental basis for fighting terrorism should be the promotion of respect for human rights for all global citizens as well as the rule of law (Simpson, 2014). This strategic framework can be achieved in various ways. Containment whereby Western ground forces avoids the occupation of the regions held by the group.
This ensures that the organization does not gain more territory while making its hold over seized territory weaker. The groups that lie within the organization’s frontiers such as Syrian Kurds, Iraqi central government and Jordan should be helped to improve their defense. Another effort entails reinforcing or developing barriers between the group and its targets. Intelligence organizations from America and Europe need to increase their surveillance both at home and abroad. Nations also need to co-operate more in this fight because it will increase the chances of succeeding against this group. For instance, the opening of Turkish air bases in 2015 enabled the U.S air forces to strike the organization’s holdings in northern Syria.
The Turkish cooperation is also very significant in controlling potential operatives’ transiting as Syrian Civil War volunteers. Such efforts will make sure Western Europe is not vulnerable to the group’s attacks and prevents the organization from getting foreign volunteers. Additionally, regional powers that border the territories under the control of ISIS need to be pressed more to ensure they counter dangerous ideologies that bring new followers to the group (Skousen et al., 2015). For instance, Saudi Arabia should be pressured into using its influence in the interpretation of Islam and resources to counter ideologies of the group.
Conclusion
ISIS is one of the deadliest terrorist groups in the world that has managed to establish a caliphate in Syria and Iraqi as well as commit various crimes in other parts of the world. The group has strong military power due to the heavy weapons it captured from Iraqi and Syrian armies and other groups as well as those obtained through purchase. ISIL criminal activities have resulted in the killing of many citizens and other brutal acts that target the minority in the society. The U.S government has helped in weakening the group by collecting intelligence that helps in conducting targeted air strikes and assists in strengthening ground forces fighting the group. Other approaches that can help to fight this group include containment, improving intelligence and defense systems, increasing co-operation between nations and countering ideologies that promote terrorism.
References
Dimovski, Z., Ilijevski, I., Babanoski, K., & Rusumanov, V. (2016). Elements of The Terrorism Reviewed through Instrumentum Operandi, Organizational Setup and Phases of Realization of the Terrorist Act. Academic Journal Of Business, Administration, Law & Social Sciences, 2(1), 231-237.
Gatehouse, J., Khan, A. R., & Friscolanti, M. (2015). The New Age Of Terror. Maclean’s, 128(47), 20-25.
Obama, B. (2014). On ISIL, Our Objective Is Clear. Vital Speeches Of The Day, 80(11), 346-348.
Simpson, J. (2014). Islamic State can be beaten. (cover story). New Statesman, 143(5232), 24-29.
Skousen, D. M., Mason, B. C., & Cromwell, D. W. (2015). Targeting ISIL Fighters And Supporters. Reporter, 42(3), 2-8.
The situation in the Middle East has been a matter of interest for centuries. It is a territory of a large geopolitical significance and the birthplace of the major world religions like Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. The Middle East also has a serious economic impact on the rest of the world because of the rich oil deposits, especially in the countries bordering the Persian Gulf. Thus, the political, economic, and social conditions here in the light of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria interference are the topic to be discussed, for its influence, usually harmful, on the variety of spheres cannot be denied.
The history of ISIS
The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (also known as Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, ISIS, ISIL, or Daesh) is an international Islamic Sunnite organization, considered terroristic by the United Nations and the majority of world countries. At the moment, it is functioning mainly on the territory of Iraq and Syria, partially controlling their territory. It is an unrecognized state, known for its severity.
The background of ISIS creation goes back to 2003 when Americans with alliance partners broke the Saddam Hussein regime in Iraq. This situation was favorable for some foreign countries (like Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar) as well as for big radical (terrorist) organizations, one of which was Al-Qaeda. Iran was the most active in this respect. With the support of the Shiite majority of the Iraq population, it considerably influenced the Baghdad government. Consequently, the transport ways for military supply, fuel, and food to Syria were put through the territory of Iraq. Later it will have a significant impact on the situation with the conflict in Syria (Gerges 52).
Ideologically, ISIS is rooted in the Jama’at al-Tawhid Wal-Jihad, an organization founded in Iraq in 2004 by a Jordanian Salafi-jihadi Abu Mus’ab al-Zarqawi. Later, he announced his loyalty to Osama bin Laden and renamed the organization to Tanzim al-Qaeda fi Bilad Al-Rafidayn (Al Qaeda Organization in the Country of the Two Rivers) (Rabil 7). This union is widely recognized as Al Qaeda in Iraq. The organization follows the ideology of Salafi-jihad, which calls back to the authentic ideas of Prophet Mohammad. The major idea is “tawhid (oneness/unity of God). This concept is divided into three categories: Tawhid al-rububiyah (Oneness of Lordship), tawhid al-uluhiyah (Oneness of Godship), and tawhid al-asma’ wal-sifat (Oneness of the Names and Attributes of God)” (Rabil 9). Still, those ideas are interpreted in a rather unusual way. In fact, Salafi-jihadists impose their perception of Islam and act to affirm jihad opposing to those governments, which do not function in accordance with God’s rules.
The name and the status of the so-called “Islamic State” used to bring much confusion in the political arena. Its activity could not remain unnoticed. Actually, it became widely discussed in June 2014, when this group occupied Mosul, a city in Iraq. It has been headed by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi since 2010. In June 2014 he became “the first caliph in generations,” the leader of all Muslims. The events in Mosul opened the doors to jihadists from all over the world to Iraq territory (Gerges 15).
Having a particular influence on the whole world, ISIS mostly affects the neighboring countries, especially those situated along the Persian Gulf. These are Bahrain, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arad Emirates. All of them, except for Iraq and Iran, constitute the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, also known as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). The presence of ISIS forces in the contemporary world can be seen on the map:
Countries with ISIS or affiliate activity (Riyadh).
ISIS political consequences
There can be a lot of disputes on the origin of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. It has already become a world sensation and changes the political configuration of the Middle East. Its military activity on the territory of Iraq and Syria had also considerably influenced the political situation of the area, and especially the Gulf countries. The Gulf Cooperation Council countries have been under the influence of ISIS since mid-2014 when the Islamic State was created in Iraq and Syria. Simultaneously, this situation increased the importance of international security.
In fact, ISIS is not “a usual case of a terrorist organization or insurgency, neither in military nor political terms” (Tziarras par. 2). ISIS, together with using social media and having well-armed forces, uses traditional terrorist means like suicide bombing, beheadings, abductions, etc. (Tziarras par. 3). There is little possibility of negotiations with ISIS representatives, because of their ideological views; they have a goal of a basically different order, both regional and global (Tziarras par. 3).
In case the Islamic State manages to step forward on their primary aim, which is establishing a Muslim State in the Middle East, it will affect the political and economic balance of the Gulf countries. The tense situation caused by the ISIS presence in the Middle East may result in oil price growth. Such a possibility is not desirable for both international politics and economy, for many other of their aspects depend on the oil cost. The dangerous situation in the Gulf would mean no free access to the oil recourses, which make 47 percent of the total oil reserves and 42 percent of gas reserves, with the various developments in and around the Arabian Peninsula (Guzansky 2).
The Gulf states are considered dependent on external support, especially that of the United States. The Arabian men in power believe that there was no other choice, for America has the military power that may stand against that of Iran, which is the most militarily powerful country on the Arabian Peninsula (Guzansky 7). The Arab Gulf countries are known not only for their relations with the USA but also for close cooperation with each other in different spheres. Nevertheless, the development of partnerships in the field of security remains comparatively slow. This is partly because of the quite dangerous countries, Iran especially, and also the appearance of the Islamic State in the area. The experience of the Gulf Cooperation Council reveals the fact that in the case of danger for one of the associate states, the others are likely to put apart their previous misunderstandings and unite. Still, the practice proves that this may not contribute much to the security of the Gulf countries (Guzansky 31).
Turkey and Lebanon
ISIS is a threat not only to the sovereignty of the countries where it is located. The national safety of the neighboring countries such as Turkey and Lebanon is also in danger. Due to the government’s policy, Turkey is among the countries that underwent great ISIS influence. The location of Turkey on the frontline also made it affected by ISIS policy. It caused serious problems in the Economics of the country. The inflow of refugees trough the Turkish-Syrian border also increased (Tziarras par. 11). Moreover, ISIS expansion intensified Turkey’s Kurdish problem. In the contemporary conditions, Turkey’s role increased among the western countries due to its participation in NATO, its military potential, and its location.
Lebanon is under a greater risk than any other country in case ISIS decides to broaden its territory as it shares the border with Syria (Powers par. 2). At present, it is the home for more refugees than any other country. In fact, about 25% of the inhabitants are refugees. The biggest refugee populations in Lebanon are the Palestinians and the Syrians. Since the country has the experience of a 15-year civil war, it tries to avoid being involved in the military conflict (Powers par. 3).
ISIS Impact on Saudi Arabia
Speaking of international and local ISIS influence, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia should be mentioned. It is one of the countries that stalk against the Islamic State (Khan 30). The KSA takes political, legal, economic, and strategic steps to diminish ISIS in the world arena. In fact, its antiterrorist strategy is among the most effective ones. Saudi Arabia has implemented “Anti-Terror Law” which helps to stand against ISIS. The improvement of local economic and administrative policies minimizes the chance of terrorists’ money involvement (Khan 30). The armed forces of the country are provided with military exercises that are aimed at the country protection. Saudi Arabia is usually treated as the home for Wahhabists which in turn is connected with jihadism. However, despite the associations, the country does not support the terrorists.
The religious impact of ISIS
Religion has always been a crucially important part of life. It used to be one of the factors in decision making concerning inner and outer problems of some countries. In the eastern countries, religious influence can be observed in the political processes as well. In this respect, the Islamic world is an example of the interrelation of religion and other aspects of life.
The Middle East unites the people of three major religions. These are Islam, Christianity, and Judaism. There are also some minor religious groups, like Yazidism, Druze, Samaritanism, and some others, but they are not so popular and fewer in the number of followers. Speaking of the Gulf countries, Islam is the most spread one, as those states are mostly Arab.
It is widely believed that the main reason for conflicts in the Middle East is religion. Still, the religious component is not the only driving force. Of course, at times the leaders turn to religion as a factor of influence, and not always with good purpose. It does not seem possible to find reasons for people’s actions. These can be the influence from outside, inner motifs, or personal beliefs. In the Middle East, with Islam as a major religion, the impact of faith should be considered among the primary causes of action. It may be difficult to realize for western people, for whom citizenship can rather be a matter of pride. They can understand more material motivations like money or land. So, when it comes to religious motifs, thoughtful people often tend to look for a hidden meaning of the events.
When it comes to ISIS, they are characterized by the implication of religious images. They refer to Islamic imagery and history. In spite of these claims, most of Muslims deny the “Caliphate” imposed by ISIS. The Muslim population, in general, does not support Islamic extremism. The justification of terrorist activity by serving sacred ideas leads to the enhancement of religious intolerance. The situation when an Islamic terrorist rapes a girl with a prayer before and after and claims he acts in the name of God is absolutely wild. Definitely, such cases do not contribute to the religion’s popularity, but to its rejection.
Islam is a rather politicized religion (Zaman 169). This factor itself gives birth to the conflicts inside the confession. The Shiites and Sunnites are old political and ideological rivals, and their confrontation gets into an active phase from time to time. This sometimes causes conflicts inside the countries of the Gulf.
In general, the Gulf states do much to raise their religious heritage and culture. The United Arab Emirates, for example, “refers to the preservation of time-honored customs and values that are based on ethnic purity and religious uniformity” (Khashan par. 30). As for Saudi Arabia, there is a factor that can be dangerous for the traditional religious regime. The increasing inflow of workers from abroad may be hazardous for the Islamic society. “The most recent population figure places the country’s total population at 30.8 million people, including 33 percent expatriate workers” (Khashan par. 32).
Social media for ISIS Propaganda and Recruiting
ISIS is famous for its military skill and brutality. However, another thing that impresses the world is the use of social media to popularize Islamic State. Messages in networks, videos, and images are widely applied. The modern means of communication are used to “recruit fighters, intimidate enemies and promote its claim to have established a caliphate, a unified Muslim state run according to a strict interpretation of Islamic law” (Shane and Hubbard para. 2). As a rule, the technical quality of their videos is high. The content depends on the aim and circumstances (Rabil 6). Before 2014 it was mainly concentrated on propaganda. By 2014, the core of ISIS propaganda shifted from military to the broad audience. The recent videos are aimed at youth. They promote Islamic State and call for Jihad (Rabi 9). It should also be mentioned that the first attempts to attract attention to ISIS were in Arab while the situation changed later. At the moment, the videos art in German and other European languages. On the whole, ISIS’s appeal to extremism is based on the two basic needs of a person: that of cognitive closure and personal importance (Fernandez par.6). Consequently, the possibility of satisfying these needs may lead people to ISIS.
Conclusions
On the whole, it may be concluded that terrorism is one of the main threats in the contemporary world. The civilized community is under the risk of hazards like suicide bombing, the news report from time to time of mass shootings, or some other chaotic killing. The situation is mainly caused by the so-called “religious fanatics”, the ISIS members being among them. The organization that arose almost from nowhere keeps in fear not only a part of the Middle East but also the rest of the world. It influences almost every sphere of life in the Gulf countries. The most significant impact is observed in political, military, and religious aspects. If the situation remains where it is, the rest of the world may be in danger too. The Islamic State, realizing the power, may not stop in the Middle East. Thus, it is the first task of world leaders to unite in order to release humanity from terrorism.
The paper covers the issue of rights in the context of war in Islam. The concept of war in Islam is reviewed. The Western and Islamic approaches to human rights are presented. The peculiarities of international humanitarian law treatment by Islam is given. Finally, the problem of human rights in Islam and those of Islam enemies is analysed.
Introduction
Islam seems to be more than a religion. It is a complex system which covers all aspects of life. It is the whole philosophy with principles and methodologies which support people in everyday challenges (Ali-Gomaa, 2014). The principles are generally accepted and followed by the Islam followers. In recent decades, Islam is often associated with war, violence, and terrorism. Consequently, its treatment of war, enemies and their rights are the concerns of the world community.
The Concept of War in Islam
In fact, the concept of war in Islam is guided by strict rules. Islam war is considered “one of the noblest forms of war fares and was legislated for defending human rights, preventing injustice and oppression and preserving human rights” (Ali-Gomaa, 2014, para.2). Initially, it resulted in some Islamic principles such as discipline, nobility, freedom and justice for all people, and priorities to public issues over personal interests (Ali-Gomaa, 2014). However, the current situation does not look so positive. The behavior of some Muslims cause panic and fear in the world (Londras, 2011).
Their military activity is justified by sacred goals. The reasons of Islam people going to war are sound. They include defending for one’s life or responding to aggression; responding to aggression and assaulting of one Muslim group on another Muslim group; fighting those who fight against Muslims and want their money; and protecting homeland or Muslims anywhere in the world (Ali-Gomaa, 2014). However, the activity of Muslim military unions goes far beyond these goals. On the way to secure freedom of Muslims, the rights of other people and even nations are violated.
Human Rights: Western and Islamic Approaches
When it comes to the issue of human rights, they appear to be a major concern of the Western world. Western approach takes rights for granted. A Universal Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations Organization defends the rights and proclaims freedoms of every person (Maundudi, n.d.). However, despite the UN resolutions, the violation of human rights has been observed all over the world in different times (Maundudi, n.d.).
Their regulations and resolutions look useless when it comes to genocide for example. Maundudi (n.d.) states that “No action has even been taken against any country guilty of this most serious and revolting crime.” According to Islam, the rights are the gift of God. Thus, no one in the world can change or remove those rights. It is one of the reasons why people in Islam are ready to fight any attempts to encroach on their rights (Maundudi, n.d.).
Islam, War, and International Humanitarian Law
International humanitarian law supports the peaceful resolution of disputes. War is considered “a political action which is undertaken when other measures have failed” (Okon, 2014, p.103). Thus, it is unreasonable as long as there is an opportunity of negotiation. Law in war is aimed at balancing the necessity of military invasion with preserving humanity. International humanitarian law differentiates various types of war crimes such as crimes against peace, crimes against humanity, genocide, and violations of the laws and customs regulating the conduct of war (Mayer, 2013).
Islamic interpretation of humanitarian law which is considered an important component of Islamic legal system does not make differences between types of war (Okon, 2014). The concept of sacred war Jihad is applied in various concepts. Okon mentions that one of the principles of Islamic laws of war is that “belligerents should display mercy, clemency and compassion in fighting the enemy” (2014, p.106). Moreover, Islamic law of war presupposes voluntary confession before the execution and the safety of civilians.
Human Rights and War of Islam
The global popularity of human rights was treated as the proof of cosmopolitan progress. It was especially popular in Europe and granted some benefits for local religious and ethnic minorities. However, the influence of cosmopolitanism on human rights might have been overestimated (Edmunds, 2013). The general approach to human rights is stated in the UN Declaration of Human Rights. However, Islam has its interpretation. Thus, the rights of citizens of an Islamic State include the security of life and property, the protection of honor, the sanctity and security of private life, the security of personal freedom, the right to protest against tyranny, freedom of expression, association, religious sentiments, etc. (Maundudi, n.d.).
Nevertheless, within the war of Islam the rights of those who are treated as enemies are inevitably violated. Islam war like any other interferes with the right to life, which if the primary right of an individual. War neglects the right to the safety of life. It is particularly true about the issue of terrorism as a component of war in Islam since no one can [predict a location of the next strike.
Conclusions
Generally speaking, any type of war is a violation of human rights. Even if people fight for the rights of their nation or land, they inevitably interfere the rights of their enemies. In the conditions of war in Islam the issue of human values is crucial since the aim of this war is the protection of Muslims rights.
The rise of sectarianism in the Arab world is currently evidenced by the existence of organizations that uphold extremism. In particular, as Potter (2014) reveals, sectarianism refers to people’s extreme affiliation to a specific party or sect, especially in the area of religion. Today, extremist groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) pose a significant threat to international peace and security. It is crucial to investigate actors who have led to the current state of sectarianism in the Middle East because the information gathered in this process may go a long way in facilitating the resolution of commotions experienced in many Middle Eastern regions.
This paper presents the invasion of Iraq by the United States (U.S.) and its allies in 2003 as the major trigger of the emergence of sectarian tensions in the Middle East. The United States’ occupation in Iraq led to the establishment of institutions that created ethnic and religious divisions in this country. As a result, a huge sectarian wave emerged, which is experienced up to date, as demonstrated by civil wars witnessed in states such as Syria. As this paper argues, although other countries’ engagements in Iraq may have played a role in facilitating the existence of radical groups, the United States’ invasion of this country in 2003 directly led to the development of sectarianism, which, in turn, resulted in the creation of extremist cohorts such as ISIS.
Reasons for the Invasion of the U.S. and its Allies in Iraq
Activities undertaken by the ISIS in the Middle Eastern region depict the degree to which sectarianism has shaped the political, social, and economic state of the Arab world. Actions of the sectarian terror group have led to the significant loss of lives and displacement of people in the Middle East, as denoted by Syria’s current situation. In 2003, America, along with its allies, including the United Kingdom (UK), Kuwait, Australia, and Japan among others, sought to destabilize the Iraqi state by fighting terrorism (Dieterich, Hummel, & Marschall, 2015).
According to Cramer and Thrall (2011), the United States’ former president, George Bush, saw the need for invading Iraq by terming Saddam Hussein’s administration as a threat to peace and security of the international community. In particular, President Bush’s regime identified weapons of mass destruction established by Saddam’s government as an imminent threat to the well-being of the world’s population. The former U.S. President, Bill Clinton, also led an initiative to disable Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction through Operation Desert Fox (ODF) (Cramer & Thrall, 2011). The belief that Saddam’s regime encouraged the development of weapons of mass extermination prompted Bush, the successor of Clinton, to continue carrying out attacks on Iraq. Therefore, it is reasonable to consider partisanship as a factor that necessitated the raid on Iraq since the two former U.S. Presidents embraced the same policy.
Furthermore, as Fisher (2016) reveals, President Bush regarded Saddam Hussein as a leader of terrorist groups existing in the Middle East, including al-Qaeda. Therefore, President Bush’s administration identified the need for attacking Iraq as justified. He termed this intervention as a strategy for protecting the global community against weapons of mass destruction and terrorism. Before the assault, America had been hit by a dreadful terrorist attack, which saw al-Qaeda bomb the twin towers of the World Trade Center. As a result, the public approved the reasonability of attacking Iraq since Bush’s administration linked Saddam to terrorist organizations such as the al-Qaeda. Nonetheless, the absence of a connection between Saddam and al-Qaeda raises questions regarding the mission of the U.S. in Iraq. In this concern, the intrusion of the U.S. in Iraq may be seen as an overreaction of to the 9-11 attacks.
In addition to justifying the invasion of Iraq as a way of promoting global peace and security, President Bush’s administration considered the need for democratizing Iraq as an important approach towards fostering political stability in the country. Saddam’s regime raised concerns over the realization of equality in Iraq because this government disregarded the interest of groups such as the Shiite among others. As a result, according to Dieterich et al. (2015), the need for alleviating marginalized groups from oppression in Iraq called for the United States’ intervention to bring about democracy in the country. Nonetheless, the U.S. held a naïve perception of democracy in Iraq since it regarded all political systems adopted in the Arab countries as a hindrance to prosperity. As a result, Bush’s administration identified the removal of Saddam from power as the first step towards fostering the adoption of autonomous leadership frameworks in the Middle Eastern region.
Fisher (2016) also emphasizes the need for safeguarding the economic interests of the U.S. as a reason that prompted the implementation of the Operation Iraqi Freedom. The Middle Eastern region is rich in oil. Thus, the U.S. upheld the importance of creating political stability in the region. Saddam’s leadership significantly disrupted political affairs of the Middle East, as denoted by the invasion of various countries. For example, the attack and annexation of Kuwait by Saddam’s forces interrupted the prevailing political stability of the region to the extent of undermining international trade. The stabilization of the political atmosphere in the region was perceived as an important intervention by the U.S. because it could prevent Iraq from conducting similar invasions in the future. As a result, America could streamline the flow of its oil resources in the Middle Eastern region.
Consequences of the Iraq Invasion
The violent invasion orchestrated by President Bush led to the collapse of the Iraqi state because the new occupant established a semi-state that turned out to be dysfunctional. The eruption of civil war in Iraq after the removal of Saddam from power is a clear depiction of the detrimental results of the U.S.-led attack on Iraq. Results of this American-facilitated invasion and occupation of Iraq range from the emergence of humanitarian crises to political instability.
Burkle and Garfield (2013) reveal the extent of the humanitarian crisis that emerged in Iraq after the 2003 invasion when military strikes dismantled cities such as Fallujah, resulting in mass casualties and the displacement of millions of people. The study by Visser (2007) paints a rather serene environment that characterized Iraq whereby no mass-killings had been reported before the U.S. led attacks in this country. America’s decision to enter Iraq was founded on the need for intervening to save Iraqi citizens and the entire world from killings that may have resulted from Saddam Hussein’s plan of developing nuclear weapons. However, Visser (2007) believes that the United States’ plan was not justified because it led to conflicts.
In particular, the development of sectarian violence after the attack and occupation of Iraq by America worsened the humanitarian crisis experienced in this country. This continued inter-communal violence heightened the number of deaths reported in the region. It had also facilitated the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Iraqis by 2006. The study presented by the International Organization for Migration (2007) reveals that roughly 2 million Iraqi citizens leave as internally displaced people (IDPs) in countries such as Syria and Jordan. Furthermore, another 2 million Iraqis have sought refuge in neighboring countries (Russell, 2016). The humanitarian crisis was significantly influenced by the sectarian violence steered by the new Iraqi administration under the watch of the U.S. authorities whereby minority groups were targeted. Efforts of humanitarian organizations to reach vulnerable Iraqis have been disrupted by the sectarian violence witnessed in this country, thereby worsening the state of the prevailing crisis.
The intrusion of the U.S. in Iraq’s political matters resulted in devastating economic conditions that currently account for the rising cases of poverty in the latter nation. As Tyner (2017) reveals, four years after the U.S. occupied Iraq, the invaded country’s economy witnessed a significant decline characterized by high rates of unemployment and rising poverty levels. Russell (2016) argues that the displacement of at least 4 million Iraqi due to the sectarian violence influenced by the U.S. has also contributed to the poor state of the economy of Iraq. Its vulnerable communities continue to languish in poverty due to the lack of jobs. Furthermore, the administration of Bush, through Paul Bremer, initiated the dissolution of multiple factories owned by the Iraqi state, resulting to the massive loss of jobs in the country (Russell, 2016). Furthermore, Bremer disbanded the Iraqi army, which constituted at least 1 million soldiers without issuing pensions or prospects of securing employment. In particular, Tyner (2017) exposes that at least 70% of Sunnis could not secure employment under the new government mainly led by Shiite officials. The state of joblessness further contributed to the rise of poverty in Iraq, thus prompting humanitarian intervention.
American-led airstrikes damaged the infrastructure in Iraq significantly to the extent of undermining economic progress. Such attacks targeted various cities that played a considerable role in sustaining the economy of Iraq. Particularly, the destruction of infrastructure in the city of Fallujah resulted in massive economic adversities whereby people, mostly Sunni Arabs, could not carry on with their economic activities in the ruined city. The displaced population moved to other regions seeking refuge with the hope of securing employment (Tyner, 2017). However, the violence experienced in various Iraqi cities disrupted the economic environment, thereby interfering with the prevailing economic progress. Since most of the property destroyed belonged to the Sunni people, the intention of the new government was to destabilize the economic prosperity of some communities. Byman (2014) argues that the economic segregation further intensified sectarian tensions throughout Iraq where conflicting communities sought to secure their socio-economic and political interests.
The U.S.-led incursion and occupation of Iraq prompted significant political consequences, which are being experienced today. After dismantling the Iraqi state, the U.S. established policies that undermined the essence of regional cooperation in the Middle East. In particular, the administrative regime formed by America in Iraq upheld policies that alienated the country from other states in the region. As such, instead of promoting regional cooperation to facilitate the establishment of a sovereign and secure Iraq, the U.S. influenced the emergence of divisions characterized by sectarianism in (Byman, 2014). For this reason, the disruption of the political climate by the United States has seen the Middle Eastern region experience unceasing conflicts in regions such as Iraq, Iran, and the Israeli-Palestinian clash. In this light, the political instability experienced in the Middle East today is a demonstration of the effects of the U.S.-led intrusion and occupation of Iraq.
The adversity of the invasion on the politics of the Middle East has led to the speculation about the possible division of Iraq in the near future. In October 2007, the U.S. Congress upheld a non-binding resolution that proposed the separation of conflicting parties in Iraq (Russell, 2016). According to Potter (2014), this policy affirmed the importance of separating the Sunni, Shiite, and Kurdish people of Iraq since it identified these communities as sectarian factions contributing to the civil war experienced in the country. As a result, the administration established in the country overlooked the essence of uniting Shiite, Sunni, and Kurdish communities. Instead, it agitated the need for further divisions. This affirmation intensified sectarian tensions in the region due to the absence of a collaborative approach to solving the underlying political challenges experienced in Iraq. Consequently, speculations regarding the possible division of Iraq into various ethnic regions have emerged. Ethnic and religious divisions in present-day Iraq denote the extent to which sectarianism, as propagated by the United States’ occupation of the Middle East state, has undermined political stability in the region.
How the U.S.-led Invasion of Iraq Prompted the Rise of Sectarianism
Policies implemented by the U.S. in Iraq have influenced the political woes witnessed in the latter country and the Middle East as a whole. In this respect, the invasion of Iraq itself may not be seen as a major problem. However, policies adopted by the U.S. have had a significant influence on the state of international relations in the Middle East. As Potter (2014) reveals, various strategies adopted by the U.S. after occupying Iraq have significantly influenced the rise of sectarianism. Specifically, America deployed policies that sought to not only foster the participation of people in democratic processes but also create a separatist Iraq. The adopted policies complicated the security problem in Iraq in an array of ways. In this light, discussing the manner in which the guidelines applied by the U.S. in Iraq led to the rise of sectarianism in the Arab world is in line with the context of this paper.
The need for establishing a democratic political system in Iraq by America contributed significantly to the unprecedented growth of sectarianism in Iraq before spreading to other states in the Middle East. The administration perceived the move to overthrow Saddam’s tyrannical leadership and replacing it with a democratic system that represents various ethnic and religious communities in Iraq as a way of fostering the region’s political stability. However, after Saddam was ousted, sectarian tensions intensified because new administrators encouraged violence against the Sunnis. The sectarian violence in Iraq arising from the establishment of new administrative policies is one of the key factors that fueled the development of ISIS, also known as “Daesh.” In a study by Siniver and Lucas (2016), Daesh is presented as a radical cohort that encourages dissonance, as opposed to coherence among people in the Middle East.
Evidently, as Dieterich et al. (2015) uncover, the establishment of policies that encouraged the Iraqi people to participate in democratic processes after the ousting of Saddam did not necessarily lead to the attainment of a functional democracy. Instead, it resulted in the rise of sectarian politics. The U.S. disregarded the difficulty of establishing a democratic system of governance in Iraq after invading this country. As a result, there was a pathetic transition from the old system to the proposed democracy. This ineffective transition was caused by poor policies such as the abolishment of the Iraqi army and the barring of officials who served in Saddam’s administration to assume senior political roles. Such policies made it difficult for new government officials to smoothly facilitate the transition. As a result, the dysfunctionality of this semi-state provided room for sectarian politics to thrive.
Policies geared toward the dissolution of state-owned industries sent the country into an economic turmoil that influenced the growth of sectarianism in Iraq. In particular, strategies executed by Paul Bremer led to considerable unemployment rates in the country (Potter, 2014). However, most of the Sunni people could not secure employment under the new government, which was mainly comprised of officials from the Shiite community. Americans provided job opportunities to Shiite cliques and their coreligionists in a way that discriminated other tribes, including the Sunnis (Tyner, 2017). Ethnic-based economic disparities bolstered the rise of sectarianism because the U.S. supported a divided approach to the reconstruction of Iraq’s economy. Therefore, separatist economic policies adopted by the makeshift Iraqi government after the United States’ occupation undermined the collaboration of different communities in Iraq and, consequently, the realization of shared economic interests.
Policies adopted by the new government in Iraq disregarded the essence of national reconciliation in the country. Specifically, separatist rules applied by the new administration in Iraq failed to create a sovereign and safe state. Instead, they resulted in communal animosity. The hatred between communities such as the Shiite, Sunni, and Kurd has fostered the affiliation of individuals to groups that uphold extremism. Communities in conflict regard extremism as the only way of protecting their interests. According to Gerges (2017), sects, for instance, the Daesh group, continue to undertake extremist activities, including terrorism, as a way of agitating for their interests in the sectarian Arab world. In this respect, it is crucial to discuss the role played by the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq on the creation of extremist groups such as ISIS in the region.
The Influence of U.S.-led Invasion of Iraq on the Rise of Extremist Groups in the Region
The new form of democracy introduced by the U.S. in Iraq was not well received by various communities in this country. This situation prompted the creation of militia groups and terrorist organizations. The Sunnis disregarded the westernized political system that encouraged participating in democratic processes. According to Frankel (2010), the Sunnis refused to take part in the 2005 elections due to the existence of a political system that did not favor their interests. The refusal to take part in elections was met by air strikes in the city of Fallujah, which was the residence of a majority of the Sunni people. As a result, this community relocated to other towns that opposed the democracy propagated by the new government. As oppressed communities relocated, there was the need to advocate for their interests through alternative ways such as extremism. Consequently, the formation of militias and terrorist groups took effect.
In the study by Gerges (2017), the dysfunctional autonomous system deployed by the new administration facilitated the spread of extremist cohorts such as ISIS in the Middle East. Principles of democracy uphold the essence of fairly representing the interests of people in the government. Nonetheless, Americans created a democracy that favored the biased representation of specific communities, especially the Shiite, thereby undermining the autonomous rights of individuals from other ethnic or religious groups. The Shiite society dominated parliamentary seats in the new state since communities such as the Sunnis did not participate in the 2005 general elections following the move by the U.S. to encourage sectarian politics (Byman, 2014). Therefore, the need for securing political interests of communities segregated under the new Iraqi government prompted the emergence of radical cohorts in the Middle East.
The economic slowdown witnessed in Iraq after the dissolution of the corporations owned by this government created an opportunity for extremist groups to emerge in countries, including Syria and other states in the Middle East. Tyner (2017) argues that the urge to secure the economic interests of marginalized communities under the new government prompted the regrouping of idle youths such as unemployed Sunnis to form extremist groups. Sunni Arabs experienced exclusion in the army, which majorly constituted ex-members of Shiite militias. As such, unemployed Sunnis saw the representation of the Iraqi Army by Shiite as a threat to their security, thereby forcing them to regroup to form ISIS. This strategy sought to protect both economic and political interests of the new category of minorities in the Middle East.
The segregation of the Sunnis in the new government paved the way for their protests calling for political reforms in Iraq. They marched in the streets of major cities, including Mosul and Fallujah in 2011. However, the Iraqi Army, which consisted of ex-Shiite militias such as the Badr Corps, managed to repress the Sunnis brutally. As Martin and Solomon (2017) uncover, there was the need for the suppressed Sunnis to regroup and create a strategy that could foster the effectiveness of its insurgency against the new government. As such, the Sunnis went back to the neighboring Syria where they reorganized themselves in a way that enabled them to capture and control provinces, for instance, al-Raqqa, in 2013 and 2014. At this point, the insurgency started taking effect. Sectarian politics propagated by the United States’ occupation of Iraq triggered continued violence. As such, the Daesh alliance incorporated Sunni elites to facilitate the leadership of this group as a way of fostering their re-entry into Iraq.
In June 2014, the Sunnis in Iraq surprised the world when they conducted an insurgency in the city of Mosul. The Mosul civil disobedience reveals the extent to which the Shiite officials in the government failed to uphold a sense of nationalism among the people of Iraq. This situation resulted in the creation of extremist groups such as ISIS. Consequently, local Sunni elites who had gotten tired of the marginalization facilitated by the new government formed an alliance with the Islamic State to change the state of political and social affairs in Iraq. This move reinforced ISIS, which ended up gaining confidence over the need to dismantle the Iraqi government that had embraced the exclusion of various religious groups in the country.
Through the reinforced leadership, the Daesh group easily seized Mosul after the Iraqi Army fled. As such, by 2014, the militant organization managed to destabilize the corrupt Iraqi armed forces in one of the major cities in this country before spreading to other regions. In an article by Mamouri (2014), ISIS is depicted gaining control of more than 33% of Iraq’s land. By so doing, Cheterian (2015) reveals that this group has effectively associated Jihadi philosophies with sectarian divisions. Confirming this finding, Mamouri (2014) argues that ISIS has indeed managed to gain control of all Sunni-dominated regions in Iraq. It is crucial to point out that activities of the militant group may extend to other parts of the Iraqi territory following the observed continuous growth of sectarianism in the Middle Eastern region. Currently, ISIS terrorizes many regions in the Middle East and beyond where it negates any ideologies supported by the western world in the Arab society.
Moreover, in line with Byman’s (2014) argument, the sectarian favoritism form of governance upheld by Bush in Iraq facilitated the growth of extremism in this region. Based on Byman’s (2014) perspectives, Bush’s administration should have concentrated on its “war on terror” in the Middle East. Adopting this move would have limited it to the al-Qaeda group. However, the invasion and occupation of Iraq in 2003 encouraged America to favor one community over others, thereby creating a degree of hostility, thanks to the prevailing sectarianism. Bush’s regime emphasized the need for destabilizing Saddam’s government since it thought he had ties with terrorist organizations such as the al-Qaeda.
In a report by Quivooij (2015), dissenting youths aged between 18 to 29 years who mainly consisted of the Sunnis saw the opportunity to organize themselves into militias that would stage constant uprisings against the discriminative and corrupt Iraqi government. Consequently, ISIS was created. It is alarming that this radical group continues to engage in violent confrontations with parties against its ideologies. The sectarian practices in the Middle East continue to pose a considerable threat to peace and security in the international community. In this regard, organizations such as the UN need to establish measures that can facilitate the creation of a cooperative approach toward the attainment of shared interests in the Middle Eastern region. As a result, a sense of nationalism may emerge, thus marking the beginning of the process of eradicating sectarian tensions experienced in this region.
Conclusion
The rise of sectarianism in the Middle East is attributed to the U.S.-led offensive and occupation of Iraq in2003. President Bush’s administration saw the need for dismantling the tyrannical government of Saddam Hussein since it was associated with terrorism and poor democratic practices. It was also a hindrance to the economic prosperity of the Middle East. As revealed this paper, many attacks linked to Saddam Hussein’s regime claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of innocent people in his country. This situation created a major humanitarian crisis. Political consequences of these assaults have worsened the security status of the Middle Eastern region due to the growth of sectarianism. In particular, the invasion of Iraq saw the U.S. employ sectarian favoritism when it offered the Shiite people key leadership positions in the new government. As a result, the Sunnis regrouped in Syria to form a radical group, namely, ISIS, before returning to Iraq to carry out an insurgency against the corrupt Iraqi administration. This paper has revealed that extremism still exists in the Middle East because the U.S. promoted sectarianism over nationalism when it invaded and occupied Iraq.
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