Umalbnin Al Sultani

ENGL 1010
Rebecca Miller
August 9
th
2014

Is Islamic Terrorism Evolving Into a More Complex Threat?
According to Hoffman, who is the director of the Center for Security Studies, terrorism
can be defined as the deliberate creation and exploitation of fear through violence or the threat
of violence in the pursuit of political change (40-41). Terrorism is a type of tactical campaign
used against a people or government to gain supremacy. Most of the world has witnessed
terrorism firsthand. Egypt witnessed terrorism in 1997 with the Luxor Massacre, when 62 people
were killed. In 2004, Europe had witnessed terrorism when in Madrid, Spain ten explosives
detonated through four commuter trains killing 192 people. The United States has primarily
witnessed terrorism during the Oklahoma City Bombing, the September 11
th
attacks, and the
Boston Marathon bombings. But is this where terrorism ends, or is it a sign of terrorism evolving
into a complex worldwide organization that is gaining strength and endurance? The United
States and the international community has spent trillions of dollars to understand and counter
this evolution of terrorism by adopting new policies, spending more money on homeland
security, and creating closer relations with foreign states. Is this working? Are we blindly
walking into something we do not understand completely, or are we making matters worse? To
look at this phenomenon more closely, this research paper will analyze the current situation in
the Middle East, by focusing on the terrorist group the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
According to the Council on Foreign Relations, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria was
originally an offshoot of Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), which was a dominant militant group fighting
against Iraqis and the United States during the American led invasion and occupation of Iraq
(Masters and Laub). This terrorist group has gained a lot of attention in the last few months as it
has done very well in its campaign to carry out Jihad. Walid Phares explains Jihad well, The
Umalbnin Al Sultani
ENGL 1010
Rebecca Miller
August 9
th
2014

main challenge for jihad, and subsequently for fatah
1
, was the ability of post-Ottoman Muslim
governments, elites, and clerics to reform the concept
2
or abandon it altogether (45). To better
explain this, it is a war to bring back the caliphate
3
that was implemented during the Ottoman
Empire. It is to have a single governed Islamic world under a Caliph instead of separate Islamic
states altogether. Hence the name The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. ISIS wants to have one
central caliph ruler, leader, and following under strict interpretation of the Quran by enforcing
sharia law
4
.
As Ronal Reagan stated in his address to the nation on terrorism, One mans terrorist is
another mans freedom fighter (Ronal Reagan). In his statement, he explains some of the
ideologies behind most terrorists who carry out terrorism and that is that the terrorist think they
are freeing and fighting for a good reason. For example, after America withdrew from Iraq they
left behind a government that was mostly Shia, this Shia government has been very bias with the
outlying Sunnis that have been requesting state assistance with food and other resources. In the
initial ISIS push from Syria into Iraq, many Sunnis were happy to have a dominant Sunni force
pressuring the Shia government of Iraq, but this eventually backfired when the Sunnis of Iraq
learned by experiencing ISIS as it was enforcing strict Sharia Law. This initial push into Syria
and Iraq could be seen as the liberators of Sunni Muslims living in the area, but the world
watched, ISIS take control of a large area, and is massacring everyone who opposes their strict
ideology. To the individual terrorist, they think they are advancing a cause that they believe in; to
the terrorist, their ideology is one that will liberate and enforcing it violently.

1
Fatah Conquest or Opening.
2
The concept of a unified Muslim world or umma.
3
Caliphate the era of Islams ascendancy from the death of Mohammed until the 13
th
century; some Moslems still maintain that the
Moslem world must always have a caliph as head of the community.
4
Sharia Law law of Islam by interpretation of Quran.
Umalbnin Al Sultani
ENGL 1010
Rebecca Miller
August 9
th
2014


Another problem that has caused terrorism within the Muslim community is the divide
between Sunni and Shia. This divide was created between Muslim Shias who believed that the
leaders of the Muslim world should belong to the descendants of Muhammad and Sunnis believe
that the leaders of Muslim world should be selected through those who are essentially voted into
power. This divide has caused a lot of conflict between the two Sects of Islam, and has spawned
a new form terrorism that shows signs of going transnational if not stopped. Spurring out of this
divide is a new wave of violent militants. In the Country Reports on Terrorism 2013, this can be
clearly stated, Terrorist violence in 2013 was fueled by sectarian motivations, marking a
worrisome trendwhere victims of violence were primarily among the civilian populations.
("Country Reports on Terrorism 2013"). ISIS is fighting without regard to anyone else, as they
believe that they are fighting for the will of Allah, their god, killing anything that stands in
their way regardless if they are children, mothers, or families. This heartless and reckless action
by ISIS is what makes it a dangerous force for the world as it packs a hard punch.
ISIS is using tactical methods learned from the battles in Iraq against the American Led
Coalition, and the other militant groups of different ideologies. It has spread past multiple
boarders and set it self up an organized well-trained military. It has brought strict Islamic Law
unto its people, and it has created itself a well-maintained infrastructure to maintain and supply
front line engagements with its enemies. It has even had the time to what it calls religious
Islamic cleansing of the streets of innocent lives, killing mass amounts of Iraqi soldiers, women
and children, Christians, and even defectors.
Umalbnin Al Sultani
ENGL 1010
Rebecca Miller
August 9
th
2014

As America has gotten involved we have created a chaotic horrific place of conflict. By
not understanding the intricacies of the Islamic culture, America has failed at countering
terrorism, especially when it had plenty of opportunities to do so. We left a nation that we
invaded in shambles and did not fully understand what we were doing by putting certain people
in power. Unlike Al Qaeda, ISIS has not restrictions; they dont care about anyone else or their
opinion. They move fast, and have the same type of blitz move that the United States have when
invading Iraq. In order to help restore peace in the region, the United States needs to seriously
think with an unbiased process, and also needs to react in a quick manner, for the timing of the
enemy will never wait for the other. The actions of the United States should strictly be that of a
moral value. If innocent people are getting killed then we should help them.








Umalbnin Al Sultani
ENGL 1010
Rebecca Miller
August 9
th
2014

Bibliography
Hoffman, Bruce. Inside Terrorism. Revised/Expanded ed. New York: Columbia UP, 2006. Print.
Masters, Jonathan and Zachary Laub. "Islamic State in Iraq and Syrea." 2014. 8 August 2014.
<http://www.cfr.org/iraq/islamic-state-iraq-syria/p14811>.
Ronald Reagan: "Radio Address to the Nation on Terrorism," May 31, 1986. Online by Gerhard
Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project.
http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=37376.
"Country Reports on Terrorism 2013." U.S. Department of State: Diplomacy In Action. United
States Department of State Bureau of Counterterrorism, n.d. Web. 9 Aug 2014.
<http://www.state.gov/documents/organization/225050.pdf>.