They control 90,000 square miles, with soldiers on the ground from the Mediterranean coast of Syria to a few miles south of Baghdad. They implement strict Sharia law in the territory that they control. They have soldiers, about 20.000 to 30,000, many of whom are foreign fighters from places like Russia, Germany, France, United Kingdom and the United States. They are currently the main opposition against Assad-eastern Syria and after completely demolishing the Iraqi army in northern Iraq, threaten to move into Shiite lands. Their goal: to unite all Sunni Muslims in the Middle East and to create a Caliphate, or Islamic State. There are three things that the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) has that makes them the most dangerous and powerful terrorist organization: strong leadership, good use of social media and an incredible ability to gain revenue.
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), is believed to be a tactical genius, organizing large scale military operations internationally. Little is known about al-Baghdadi except that he was captured as a civilian in 2004 and held prisoner by American forces for either one or five years (depending on the source). While captive, it is believed he met Al-Qaeda leaders. In 2010, after his release, he became leader of Al-Qaeda’s Iraq faction, the ISI, and began large scale terrorist attacks throughout the country. In 2013, al-Baghdadi moved many of his soldiers out of Iraq and into Syria. Quickly, ISI began having confrontations with al-Nusra, a terrorist organization allied with Afghanistan’s Al-Qaeda. After negotiations failed, ISIS separated all ties to Al-Qaeda and absorbed over 80 percent of al-Nusra’s fighters, eliminating the rest.
ISIS is waging a war, not only in the field, but on the Internet. The terrorist organization has a commanding presence in social media, which is a leading reason many foreign fighters are willing to fight for them. ISIS is constantly making exciting propaganda videos of their activities, being broadcasted in many different languages. With thousands of tweets and hundreds of videos, they are winning the hearts and minds of individuals from all over the world. An estimated 10,000 soldiers who fight for ISIS are foreigners, most of whom are recruited from their social media campaign. In their videos, they portray themselves as Sunni freedom fighters and make execution videos of infidels. In the same way that Apple revolutionized the music industry, ISIS has revolutionized the terrorist industry, in more ways than just videos.
Unlike other Sunni terrorist organizations which rely on funding from wealthy individuals from countries like Saudi Arabia, ISIS is able to generate enough revenue to be completely self-sufficient. Through kidnappings, extortion, looting and the selling of oil, ISIS has collected a huge amount of wealth estimated to be as high as $2 billion. They earn an estimated $1-2 million a day and once stole over $400 dollars’ worth of gold from an Iraqi bank. With such exuberant amounts of money, ISIS has the capacity to wage a long enduring war.
In June 2014, ISIS invaded northern Iraq. Over 50,000 Iraqi soldiers fled their posts; those captured were executed. ISIS soldiers took over most of northern Iraq, capturing weapons and freeing prisoners. Other Sunni militias that were fighting the Iraqi government both before and after the invasion swore allegiance to al-Baghdadi. ISIS continues to grow stronger every day and has the superiority on the ground. Their biggest threat comes from the air in the form of U.S. drone strikes. In August, the U.S. began an air campaign to protect personnel in the country. On Sept. 10, the president declared that he will expand his air campaign into Syrian territory and coordinate them with Iraqi and Kurdish ground attacks.
In my opinion, ISIS is the embodiment of all the evil and hate that extends from fanatical extremism. If gone unchecked, I believe that they will eradicate the millions of non-Sunni minorities and we will see one of the biggest genocides in decades. That being said, all that is happening is either a direct or indirect result of American involvement in that country. Therefore, America has a responsibility to aid these minority groups and help them to be safe in their own lands. We cannot leave these groups to be annihilated like we allowed so many Hmong people in Vietnam and the Kurds in the first Gulf War. I believe the president is making the right decision for a focused air strikes across ISIS territory. It worked extremely well in Libya against Gaddafi, toppling an anti-U.S. nation without the use of ground troops. America should also continue to support an independent Kurdistan, or what appears to be happening now, a Kurdish-led Iraqi government. The Kurds, which are an ethnic group in Iraq, have the only military prowess that can stand up to ISIS. It is unclear what the future holds for ISIS and Iraq, but one thing is clear: Don’t underestimate ISIS.
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