Islamic State

Islamic State. The Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, is a Sunni jihadist organization that was founded by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in 2006, with the goal of establishing a caliphate based on Sharia law. The group gained international attention in 2014, when it launched a surprise attack on Mosul, Iraq, and declared the establishment of a caliphate with Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi as its leader, who was later killed in a Barisha raid by United States Armed Forces. The group's ideology is influenced by Salafism and Wahhabism, and it has been linked to Al-Qaeda and other jihadist organizations, including Boko Haram and Al-Shabaab.

● History

The Islamic State has its roots in the Iraq War, when Abu Musab al-Zarqawi founded Al-Qaeda in Iraq in 2002, with the goal of establishing an Islamic state in Iraq. After the US invasion of Iraq in 2003, the group began to gain strength, and it launched a series of attacks against US troops and Iraqi security forces, including the Battle of Fallujah and the Battle of Ramadi. In 2011, the group began to expand its operations into Syria, where it established a presence in the Syrian Civil War and began to fight against the Syrian government and other rebel groups, including the Free Syrian Army. The group's expansion into Syria was facilitated by the Arab Spring and the subsequent Syrian refugee crisis, which created a power vacuum that the group was able to exploit, with the help of Turkey and other regional powers, including Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

● Ideology

The Islamic State's ideology is based on a Salafist interpretation of Islam, which emphasizes the importance of Sharia law and the need to establish a caliphate based on Islamic principles. The group's ideology is also influenced by Wahhabism, a Sunni Islamic movement that originated in Saudi Arabia and emphasizes the importance of puritanical Islamic practices, as promoted by Ibn Taymiyyah and Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab. The group's leaders, including Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi and Abu Muhammad al-Adnani, have been influenced by the writings of jihadist thinkers such as Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri, and have sought to establish a caliphate that is based on Sharia law and is free from Western influence, as envisioned by Sayyid Qutb and other Islamist thinkers.

● Organization

The Islamic State is organized into a number of different branches, each of which is responsible for a specific aspect of the group's operations, including military operations, intelligence gathering, and propaganda. The group's leadership is headed by a caliph, who is responsible for making strategic decisions and providing guidance to the group's members, with the help of Shura Council. The group also has a number of different provinces, each of which is responsible for a specific geographic area, including Wilayat al-Iraq and Wilayat al-Sham. The group's members are organized into a number of different units, each of which is responsible for a specific task, such as military operations or intelligence gathering, and are trained at camps in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

● Territorial Control

At its peak, the Islamic State controlled a significant amount of territory in Iraq and Syria, including the cities of Mosul and Raqqa. The group's territorial control was facilitated by its ability to exploit sectarian divisions in Iraq and Syria, and to establish a presence in areas where the government was weak or absent, including Anbar Province and Deir ez-Zor Governorate. The group's territorial control also allowed it to establish a system of governance based on Sharia law, which included the establishment of courts and police forces, as well as the collection of taxes and the provision of public services, with the help of Hamas and other Islamist groups.

● Military Activities

The Islamic State has been involved in a number of different military conflicts, including the Iraq War and the Syrian Civil War. The group's military activities have included the use of suicide bombings, car bombings, and other forms of asymmetric warfare, as well as the use of social media and other forms of propaganda to promote its ideology and recruit new members, with the help of Ansar al-Islam and other jihadist groups. The group has also been involved in a number of different battles, including the Battle of Mosul and the Battle of Raqqa, and has clashed with a number of different militias and armies, including the Iraqi security forces and the Syrian Democratic Forces, as well as Kurdish forces and Turkish Armed Forces.

● International Reactions

The Islamic State has been the subject of significant international attention and concern, with many countries and organizations condemning the group's terrorist activities and calling for its defeat, including the United Nations, European Union, and Arab League. The group has been designated as a terrorist organization by a number of different countries, including the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, and has been the subject of a number of different military interventions, including the US-led intervention in Iraq and the US-led intervention in Syria, as well as Russian military intervention in Syria and Turkish military intervention in Syria. The group's activities have also been the subject of significant media attention, with many news organizations and think tanks providing analysis and commentary on the group's ideology and operations, including BBC News, Al Jazeera, and Brookings Institution.

Category:Jihadist groups