Middle East

Camp Bucca where ISIS was forged.

Islamic State: Challenges and Basic Policies (Part 2)

Ruben Kruglov

The key personnel of the “Islamic State” (Organization banned in Russia) was trained and formed in the Camp Bucca under the constant US supervision

 

This is the second article in the series. You can find part one here.

In the first half of 2015 reputable publications and news agencies of different countries increasingly heatedly discussed whose product ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) is and who should be held responsible for the creation and activities of this group. The discussion of this topic that begun late in 2014 in the Western media can hardly be stopped. And so the competition or even war of accusations is inevitable.

The key issue of the emerging debate is the long-standing question of the real relationship between ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) and the United States. So far, it is not easy to give a full answer to that question. However, many things are starting to make sense.


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The destruction of an exhibit in a Mosul museum

Islamic State: Challenges and Basic Policies. Part I

Ruben Kruglov

 

ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) is too ambitious, aggressive and multi-dimensional to give up at the first sign of trouble. The question is how it will react to challenges and what policy it will pursue.

 

Recently, soothing articles started appearing in the Western media that the Islamic State (Organization banned in Russia) terrorist organization is in crisis. Let us take a look at what might really be symptoms of an unfolding crisis.

1) ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) units are increasingly forced to shoot their own fighters frightened by the horrors of ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) policy and seeking to defect.


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U.S. soldiers in Baghdad. April 23, 2009

The Caliphate and the Capitol: Choosing the strategy. Part 2

Ruben Kruglov

 

The Islamic state (Organization banned in Russia) is being quick in creating an image of enemy necessary to waging the war, as well. In the fall of 2014, the main objects of ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) attention, Russia and Syria, were determined.

 

In the previous article we raised the question of how exactly ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) (or “Islamic state” (Organization banned in Russia)) functions, what their goals and objectives are. This question requires ever-greater certainty.

Today it is not enough to say that on the territory claimed by the armed insurgents (i.e., in Iraq and Syria) a Caliphatist quasi-state formation is being created.

Nor is it enough to emphasize that ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) today is a theocratic quasi-state, which is urgently creating all its life support systems (management, financial bodies, power structures, legislative, judicial and executive branches of power, taxation system).


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Erdoğan meeting U.S. President Barack Obama during the 2014 Wales summit in Newport, Wales

Turkey and ISIL: Anti-Chinese cooperation

Ruben Kruglov

 

If the “Islamic State” (Organization banned in Russia) would have managed to quickly capture the territories controlled by Afghan-Pakistani Taliban and make these territories a part of their proclaimed “caliphate”, the threat of destabilization would be right on China’s doorstep

 

The latest months showed how deeply Turkey is absorbed by everything that has to do with ISIL (Organization banned in Russia). Turkey was behind the stage of the events developing around the “Islamic State” (Organization banned in Russia) for a long time, aiding its activities only indirectly or unofficially. However, an official statement was made in autumn 2015 in Istanbul, which could be viewed as a sort of Turkish declaration regarding the “Islamic State”.

The statement was made by the head of National Intelligence Organization of Turkey Hakan Fidan, who usually doesn’t make public appearances. Fidan stated: ” ‘Islamic State’ [Organization banned in Russia – Editor] is a reality. We must acknowledge that we can’t eradicate such a well-organized and popular organization such as the “Islamic State” [Organization banned in Russia – Editor]. Which is why I urge our Western partners to reconsider their former notions of the political branches of Islam and put aside their cynical mindset, and together frustrate the plans of Vladimir Putin to suppress the Islamic revolution in Syria.”

Based on the reasoning above, Hakan Fidan makes the following conclusion: it is necessary to open an office or a permanent embassy of ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) in Istanbul — “Turkey strongly believes in this“.

The story with the date of the statement of National Intelligence Organization head is a curious one. First it appeared in online media on October 18, 2015, but didn’t get much attention back then. The statement of Hakan Fidan became famous after it got republished on the websites of news agencies on November 13 — on the eve of Paris terror attacks, which happened on the night between November 13 and November 14.


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The Caliphate and the Capitol: Choosing the strategy

Ruben Kruglov

 

Editor’s note: The United States contemplated the ground invasion in Syria “against ISIL (Organization banned in Russia)” for a long time now – since 2014, but they never dared. Did they find a way around it? In the past few days several large Middle East powers have claimed that they are ready to invade Syria, including Turkey, a NATO member. Unlike the U.S., they don’t even pretend who they are fighting: on February 9, 2016 Turkish Prime-Minister claimed that Turkey will defend its “Aleppo brothers” against the Syrian army. On February 11 Turkish President Erdogan said that at some point Turkey will take measures due to fighting in Aleppo. Saudi Arabia, Saudi-occupied Bahrain, UAE and other countries of the region claim that they are prepared to launch a ground invasion in Syria. All of these claims appeared after it became clear that ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) is steadily losing to the Syrian army back by Russian air force. Syria held on for five years, like a fortress, surrounded, but never giving up. The soldiers of the Syrian army shed their blood for all of us, for the whole world: it became obvious when ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) released maps with Europe being marked as future ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) territory. And now some of the largest armies in the region prepare to stab the Syrian army in the back. As we have seen in the previous article, multiple terrorist groups across the world swear allegiance to ISIL (Organization banned in Russia). It seems that some countries did this too — they just didn’t announce it yet.

 

In 2014 the expansion of ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) in Syria and Iraq allowed the “Islamic State” (Organization banned in Russia) to capture resources only enough to proclaim the creation of its caliphatist territorial core.

 

On September 24 2014 U.S. President Barack Obama addressed the UN General Assembly. He named three main threats to the world and international security: Ebola virus, “Russian aggression in Europe” and the expansion of ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant) (Organization banned in Russia). In this order. Many have noted back then that ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) was only the third danger according to Obama.

How did the U.S. actually evaluate the threat of ISIL (Organization banned in Russia)?


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Map of the Caliphate proposed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant

Middle East: Stages of “Islamic State” formation

Ruben Kruglov

 

Editor’s note: Rebuilding the world is a whole field of warfare in itself. ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) is one of the most powerful instruments of erasing state borders by violence and blood that has been created after World War II. ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) shows all signs of being not just Islamist, but fascist. Slavery and paganism are just a few of the indicators. ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) is also heavily aided by Turkey: Turkey is training ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) militants, funds ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) by buying its oil, Turkey is even proposing to open the embassy (sic!) of ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) in Istanbul on the eve of Paris terror attacks… And Turkey downed the Russian jet that was bombing ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) oil tank trucks. As we can see, Ukraine, Turkey, ISIL (Organization banned in Russia), Middle East are all a part of a certain picture, of a new fascist world order that Russia tries to stop by supporting the right of nation states on sovereignty. The study of world-rebuilding warfare will help us see a part of this picture more clearly. We will start by studying ISIL (Organization banned in Russia).

 

Obviously, one of the directions of the expansion and entrenchment of ISIL (Organization banned in Russia) is Libya. Another direction of the activity of the “Islamic State” (Organization banned in Russia) is Saudi Arabia.

 

Today the main political process for all of the Middle East and Northern Africa is the creation and the explosive growth of the so-called new caliphate. That same “new caliphate” which was recognized by the world as a real force after Syrian and other Islamists, who attacked Bashar al-Assad, managed to quite powerfully spread out in Iraq, creating the so-called “Islamic State” (IS) (Organization banned in Russia).


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