The new war against terrorism and the so called Islamic State
PRESIDENT Obama's declaration to degrade and destroy the emerging threat posed by the group that calls itself the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL) could not have come sooner. Since the beginning of the civil war in Syria and later spawning of the Islamic militants in the war torn region his critics on both sides of the spectrum have either accused him either of inaction and indecisiveness, or warned him against involving the US in another war in the Middle East. Whether the birth of the so called militant Islamic state is a result of inaction of the US in Syrian war or the consequence of the war in Iraq is for history to judge. But the crucial fact is that there is a large body of well-equipped warriors who are committed to establishing a religious state based on their interpretation of Islam and its past. This is not all, more frighteningly the ideology of these warriors is based on religious and sectarian intolerance, violent suppression of opposition, and forceful imposition of laws that do not respect rights of free speech, religion, or gender.
Despite claims from President Obama that this new war against terrorism against ISIL is targeted against this terror group alone, there are challenges that the US faces both in terms of its success and the perception it creates in the Muslim world.
First is the campaign itself against the so called Islamic State. The success of this group of Jihadists in the name of Islam can be attributed to several factors chief of which were sectarian divisions in Syria and Iraq, multiple divisions among groups opposing Assad in Syria, and above all the woefully weak post Saddam government in Iraq led by an overtly sectarian Prime Minister.
The sectarian divisions in Iraq and Syria have been always there; primarily Shia Sunni divisions. These divisions, however, were less pronounced under Saddam in Iraq and Assad in Syria, both of whom ironically belonged to minority sects. The iron grip of both on the governments of their countries, and their despotic rules helped suppression of the sectarian strife. The war in Iraq and civil war in Syria later opened the Pandora's Box, and sectarian strife began gnawing both countries.
The second enabling factor was the fractured opposition to President Assad and splintering of various groups based on ideologies. It is ironic that despite the despotic image that President Assad held, he like his father depicted a secular image of his government. Among groups that opposed Assad there were secular elements who were mainly disaffected officials, but they soon were outnumbered by other pro-religious groups. In the chaos that followed, the group that emerged to be better organized, disciplined, and also well-armed was the Al-Qaeda inspired band of warriors. They were not only well-equipped, but also motivated by an aspiration to establish a religious state harking back to their concept of an Islamic state fourteen hundred years ago.
The failure of the government in establishing order in a war torn country coupled with rising economic crises added to the sectarian bias of the government to the Shiite alone. The religious militants who drew heavily from the Sunni sect were able to exploit the feeling of alienation among the minority Sunnis across the border and offer them protection against the perceived injustice against them by the predominantly Shiite government.
Next is the perception of this new or latest US campaign in the Arab and Muslim world. The adoption of the name of Islamic State by the terror group is a clever design to draw attraction and sympathy of the followers of the religion around the globe. The so called ideological bias of the group is also responsible for attracting disenchanted Muslim youth from various parts of the world to its war. To them it is a war for a cause; it is a mission to establish a government based on their ideology. The militant group will portray this war as another western attempt to thwart Muslims to govern themselves according to their way of life and religion. A war against Islamic State is a war against their religion.
Success of this latest war against terrorism, rather against ISIL, will depend on not only destruction of the group itself, but demolition of the lie and myth that the group has created about Islam and the system of government that it claims as the true heritage of Islam. The government that it wants to establish was conceived fourteen hundred years ago for a society that came out of hundreds of years of ignorance, intolerance, and savagery. True heritage of Islam is not the Caliphate that this militant group wants to resurrect; the true heritage of Islam is establishing human rights, tolerance, and promotion of peace and equality.
This success will not come only with air strikes and ground support from allies on the ground, this success will come when the countries in real danger from this threat combine to stop the threat. These countries are not only the immediate neighbors of Syria and Iraq but also the countries where the majority of the population that profess the religion of Islam lives. They need to realize that their religion has been hijacked by a rogue group that believes neither in the core principles of the religion nor practices it. It only wants to grab a territory to practice and preach their violent ideas. The success of this latest war will come about when all of these countries throw in their lot and combine to eradicate this evil.
The writer is a political analyst and commentator.
Comments