To date, the Islamic State group (IS) is considered the most dangerous terrorist organization in the world. Every day the number of its supporters is growing, and the size of the territories controlled by it is increasing. Let's look at the causes of this phenomenon and find out the potential danger that the militants of the “Islamic state” bear to the world.
Origin of an organization
After the overthrow of the regime of Saddam Hussein in Iraq in 2003, this country became one of the main global centers of Islamic extremism. Many Muslim terrorist organizations began to operate on its territory , mainly of the Sunni persuasion, proclaiming as their goal the fight against the United States, Shiites and Israel. One of the most powerful groups was Ansar al-Islam, led by al-Zarqawi, who later recognized herself as part of al-Qaeda.
The history of the Islamic State is usually counted from 2006, when, based on the unification of part of the Iraqi cell of al-Qaeda and some other Muslim extremist groups, the formation of the Islamic State of Iraq was announced. The center of this association was recognized as the city of Mosul, and the first leader - Abu Abdullah al-Baghdadi. From the first days of its existence, the organization took an active part in the hostilities and terrorist activities in Iraq. Since mid-May 2010, after the death of the predecessor, the head of the group was Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi with the title of emir.
Parish in Syria
Meanwhile, after the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011 between President Assad and fighters against his regime, among whom were Islamic militants, this country also became a hotbed of instability in the region. Various extremist forces began to flock here.
The group led by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi did not stand aside. In connection with its arrival in Syria, from the beginning of April 2013, it adopted a new name: “Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant”. This aroused the indignation of the leaders of al-Qaeda, in particular, the successor to Osama bin Laden Ayman al-Zawahiri. Indeed, this group until this time was considered an Al-Qaida-controlled organization, and its other cell, the Al-Nusra Front, already operated in Syria.
ISIS, meanwhile, has taken control of a significant part of Syria. By mid-2014, he controlled a larger area of Syrian territory than any other side of the conflict, including the Assad government.
The final break with Al Qaeda
After al-Baghdadi refused to heed the call of al-Zawahri to return his militants to Iraq, in February 2014 the leadership of al-Qaeda announced a complete break with ISIS, and that this structure is not its unit. Moreover, hostilities began between ISIS and the official al-Qaeda cell, the Al-Nusra Front organization. During the conflict between them, about 1800 militants from both sides died.
However, with the beginning of the use of airstrikes by the Western coalition on the positions of militants, an agreement was signed between ISIS and the Al-Nusra Front.
Proclamation of the caliphate
After successful military operations in the first half of 2014, the militants of the “Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant” captured significant territories in Syria and Iraq, as well as a number of large cities, including Mosul and Tikrit, coming close to Baghdad. In the wake of such successes, their leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in mid-2014 proclaimed himself a caliph.
This was a significant event, because the title of the caliph meant a claim to supremacy over the entire Muslim world. The last to wear this title was the representative of the Osman dynasty Abdul-Majid II, who was deprived of it in 1924. Thus, al-Baghdadi claimed succession from the sultans of the Ottoman Empire and, accordingly, to the territory once controlled by it. However, he supported the idea of creating a worldwide caliphate.
In this regard, it was decided to remove the regional binding in the name of the organization, and now it has become known as: “Islamic State”.
Airstrikes of coalition on militants of the IG
Seeing what danger to the world the militants of the Islamic State group pose, a number of Western countries, including the USA, Australia, Great Britain and France, decided to take joint actions against the terrorist threat. Since June 2014, these powers have launched airstrikes on extremist positions in Syria and Iraq. Caliph al-Baghdadi, who died in March 2015, was fatally wounded during the bombing. According to another version, he did not die, but was only paralyzed. His successor was Abu Ala Al-Afri, who was also killed on May 13, 2015.
Kurdish defeat
The Islamic State group suffered the most severe defeat in its history in the battles with the Kurds for the city of Koban, which took place from the beginning of autumn 2014 to January 2015. Despite the fact that the militants managed to temporarily capture this city, they were then knocked out of it. From February 2015 to the present, there are battles for the surrounding villages.
But, despite a number of failures and the death of their leaders, the militants of the Islamic State continue to control significant territories, and at the moment they are a threat not only to the region, but to the whole world.
Distribution of the “Islamic State" to other regions
Although the Islamic State was not recognized by any country in the world, after the proclamation of the caliphate and the significant military successes of this organization, various Islamic terrorist groups around the globe began to join it, declaring themselves to be the provinces of the Caliphate.
First of all, the IS militants were able to gain a foothold in Libya. Back in April 2014, they captured the cities of Dern and Nofalia, and currently besiege Sirte. Thus, the Islamic State began to strengthen in North Africa. Libya after the overthrow of Gaddafi is torn apart by a civil war between the General National Congress and parliament. The IS so far controls relatively small territories there, waiting for how the hostilities between the main opposing forces will develop.
One of the first to join the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan IG, led by its leader Usmon Ghazi. This organization currently operates mainly in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Back in 2014, employees of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Uzbekistan informed the public about this.
At the same time, the Egyptian Islamist group Ansar Beit al-Makdis announced its accession to the Islamic State.
After the Shiite coup in Yemen and the outbreak of the civil war there, the Al-Qaida on the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) association announced at the end of winter 2015 that it was breaking ties with its parent organization and swearing allegiance to the Caliph al-Baghdadi. At the moment, AQAP controls significant territories in Yemen.
In early spring 2015, the Boka Haram extremist organization, which subjugated the lands in northern Nigeria and waged a real war with a coalition of states, declared itself the “West African Province of the Islamic State”.
In addition, the militants of the Islamic State have designated their presence in Afghanistan and Pakistan. There, some Taliban groups crossed over to the IS side. With other Taliban fighters, the Islamic State began a confrontation.
Thus, the question of where the Islamic state is located will not receive a monosyllabic answer, since its various branches are scattered throughout the world.
Ideology
The Islamic State has moved away from the narrow ideology of Sufism and Wahhabism, which plays a leading role in Al Qaeda. In this way, it was able to attract a larger number of supporters, which is logical, because for most of the population of Syria and Iraq, Sufism and Wahhabism are alien. IS leaders skillfully played on this, declaring themselves caliphs of all Sunnis.
But a significant part of the extremists of the Islamic State are not local residents, but representatives of other Arab countries. There are also a lot of volunteers from Europe and Russia, in particular the militants who fought for Ichkeria.
The actions of terrorists of the “Islamic State” in relation to opponents and the local population are extremely cruel. Often practiced torture and demonstrative executions.
Goals of the Islamic State
The leaders of the Islamic state have declared declaratively that their main global goal is to establish a worldwide caliphate. But at the same time, the militants are talking about tasks for the near future. These include the seizure of territory previously owned by the Ottoman Empire, the Arabian Peninsula, Central Asia and the Caucasus. Extremists have already stated that they are working on the creation of nuclear weapons.
The countries of the whole world should unite in the fight against terrorism of the Islamic State, because war and death come to where the Islamic State is located.