THE ISLAMIC STATE DISEC

Transcription

1 THE ISLAMIC STATE DISEC

2 Intro to ISIL The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), or, as they are more commonly known, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is a violent extremist organisation operating in the Middle East. Its goal is to establish a pan-muslim state in the Middle East and it is currently engaged in open warfare in Syria and Iraq in an attempt to achieve its goal. ISIL is trying to gain control of all Muslim states in the Middle East, and the group is willing to use unlawful, violent, and simply abhorrent tactics to get there. ISIL is currently attempting to create an Islamic State by ridding the Middle East of the boundaries formed by the west after World War II. ISIL aims to be a caliphate, an Islamic political-religious leadership run by a caliph (which is term for a putative successor to the prophet Muhammad). ISIL s members follow an extreme interpretation of Islam that promotes violence of any sort to accomplish their goals. They characterize those who do not agree with their beliefs as infidels. Their ideology is similar to many other jihadist groups, including Al-Qaeda, but is in fact more extreme. In other words, ISIL is an even more extreme offshoot of an already extreme interpretation of Islam. ISIL has been designated a terrorist organization by the United Nations, the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Indonesia, Canada, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt. 1 History ISIL was originally founded as Jama at al-tawhid wal-jihad (JTJ) in 1999 by a Jordanian, Abu Musab al-zarqawi, and has since been supported by some Islamic militants. 2 Before founding the JTJ, Zarqawi had met with Osama bin-laden, but ultimately decided not to join al-qaeda. President Bush was aware of Zarqawi s relations with bin Laden, so when Zarqawi fled to Iraq after 9/11, Bush believed that al Qaeda was working alongside Saddam Hussein, but this was not the case. The group s original intent was to overthrow the Kingdom of Jordan, which was thought to be straying from Islamic values. But JTJ soon moved on to other goals: when the United States first invaded Afghanistan in 2003, the group had already expanded, even gaining a number of foreign fighters. Their purpose in Iraq was to fight against the coalition that was in place. The coalition aimed to remove the regime and set up a democracy in Iraq. JTJ had four main goals: they wanted to get the coalition to withdraw from Iraq, then get rid of the interim government. Next, they planned to kill or otherwise remove the entire Shia population, and finally, create an Islamic state that adhered to their values. They focused on suicide bombings to try to accomplish these goals at first, but in 2004 they began using rocket propelled grenades and small arms on a larger scale. In 2003 the JTJ began executing notable attacks in Iraq. They bombed the Jordan embassy in Baghdad (17 casualties), UN headquarters in Baghdad (23 casualties), and the Imam Ali Mosque (at least 86 casualties). They attempted to release chemical bombs in Jordan in April of 2003, but failed. 3 The JTJ also attacked humanitarian organizations like the Red Cross. They did so numerous times to show the coalition how serious they were. In 2004, the JTJ pledged its allegiance to al-qaeda after 2

3 Bin Laden had shown his praise for the group. They then changed their name to Tanzim Qa idat al-jihad fi Bilad al-rafidayn, or Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI). At the end of the year, Britain and the US teamed up to capture insurgents in Operation Phantom Fury. Their main target was the AQI. Their pursuit evolved into the Second Battle of Fallujah. The battle ended with many casualties on both sides, but the AQI was able to escape in the end. In 2005, AQI s focus shifted to high profile killings and bombings. They attacked voters during an election, launched a suicide attack on Abu Ghraib Prison, and bombed the Sheraton Ishtar and Palestine Hotel. 150 people were killed in a bombing of the Musayyib Marketplace, and 160 were killed in Baghdad s Oruba Square, where a member of the AQI detonated a car bomb. In 2006, two US soldiers and four Russian Embassy officials were kidnapped, tortured, and killed by AQI militants. Most of the attacks were intended to initiate sectarian violence, so they were targeted at the Shia majority in order to gain popularity and in turn inspire people to join their war against the Shia majority. As well as a rebel leader, Zarqawi (still leading the movement) wanted to be a spiritual leader, so he began implementing strict rules, and those who did not follow them were executed. In June of 2006, however, the United States gained intel on Zarqawi s whereabouts and successfully assassinated him. From there the group was taken over by Abu al-masri. At the time of Zarqawi s death, many Sunni Muslims were unsettled by the strict rules put into place, and the United States decided to capitalize on this. The US military teamed up with the Iraqi government and sections of the rebel group called The Sunni Awakening that were unhappy with the AQI to help reduce the amount of civilian deaths that would occur, because at this time it was unreasonable to assume that they would be able to stop the AQI completely. The participants in this awakening were paid by the US government to fight against the AQI. They also believed that helping the United States would make them immune to prosecution for their previous war crimes. The Sunni Awakening, as it is called, helped decrease the violence temporarily. While the Awakening helped demoralize AQI to a certain extent, Shia-Sunni issues were left unsolved. The US realized this and attempted to create dialog between the two sects of Islam a few times. Even so, those efforts did not help matters much and Iraq s government was left to solve the problem themselves. It was not long before Sunni resentment towards the Shias returned on a large scale, prompting the return of AQI. When US troops were fully withdrawn from Iraq in 2011, AQI was under the control of Abu Bakr al-baghdadi, a native Iraqi. Soon, an operation that was formerly run by many foreigners became largely run by Iraqis themselves. It was at this point that AQI was rebranded as the Islamic State of Iraq (ISI). The goals and tactics of the ISI remained the same as those of AQI when it was run by Zarqawi. They continued to target Shia civilians. They also started to attack police offices, military offices, checkpoints, and Iraqi army recruiting stations. Many former members of the Sunni Awakening joined ISI, allowing the group to expand into Syria. In Syria at the time there was a large uprising against the president, Bashar al-assad. ISI also wanted to oust Assad, since he and many of the Syrian government officials were Alawites, a sect of Shia (remember, the ISI is Sunni). The ISI fought with Assad s troops in many areas of the nation and they were able to remove Syrian troops from large areas of the nation. ISI was renamed, The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) at this time, showing the greater goals of the group. The Levant is the historical name given to the area in the Mediterranean from Egypt to Turkey, including Israel, Cyprus, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, and Syria. At this point, the group hoped to expand 3

4 power across all of the Middle East. Unlike most rebel groups in Syria, ISIL was more focused on bringing new believers to its soon-to-be Islamic State than overthrowing Assad. ISIL currently claims military, religious, and political authority over Muslims worldwide. Iraq has struggled to combat ISIL on their border, and in June of 2014, removed their troops from the border at which ISIL claimed control. Jordan and Saudi Arabia moved troops to their borders with Iraq in response to the removal of these troops. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, during the month of July alone, ISIL was able to recruit over 6,000 fighters. 4 They continue to capture more and more land in Syria, threatening the lives of thousands. Although ISIL has mainly located itself in Syria at this point, they continue to threaten expansion in Iraq. In October of 2014, they set out to capture the Iraqi capital city Baghdad. The Iraqi military threatened refusal to form any type of response if the US did not assist. ISIL s bases spread outside of Iraq and Syria in October as well after a radical group controlling a city in Libya pledged allegiance to ISIL. In November, an Egyptian militant group also pledged allegiance to ISIL. In 2014, ISIL was accused with committing various human rights violations. They have killed thousands of civilians and hundreds of prisoners of war. They have been credited with the killing around 450 Syrian Army soldiers and around 1,400 Iraqi soldiers. 5 Their treatment of other religious groups has been horrifying as well. In attempts to convert people to Islam they have tortured, mutilated, and threatened multiple people, even killing some of those who refuse to convert. They also treat Shia Muslims poorly, along with other minority groups in the Middle East. They capture and kill people from these groups and the others flee in fear of having a similar fate and continue to harm helpless civilians throughout Iraq and Syria. ISIL also has children soldiers working from Iraq amongst their troops. People speculate that children start training as young as six. It is believed that some of these children may be orphans taken in by ISIL. These children are then sent as human shields. They may also be used for blood transfusions. Children are also being used as messengers by strapping notes to the children in order to pass information along. Anti-terrorist forces are less likely to stop small children, who have been brain washed by ISIL. Others say that they are religiously trained until they are 16, at which point they begin military training. Along with these human rights violations, many women and girls in Iraq are said, by various human rights organizations and the United Nations, to be sexually abused and enslaved by ISIL. Over the past year, ISIL has been releasing videos of ISIL members beheading and killing many people. Among these people have been two American journalist, an American aid worker, two British aid workers, three Libyans, and around ten Kurds. 6 These beheading videos are used to threaten the West and are often accompanied by propaganda. In many of these videos, a man speaks both Arabic and English, with an English accent. The videos and beheadings have become well known around the world. Where is ISIL Now? ISIL is in control of areas in both Iraq and Syria. Its main base is in Raqqa in Eastern Syria and they also gained control of Mosul, Iraq s second-largest city, over last summer. Along with these areas, ISIL controls a lot of the oil assets in both Syria and Iraq, which, by some estimates, has made them about $3 million each day (Thompson). Along with their bases in Syria and Iraq, ISIL has many people fighting for them internationally. There are about 4

5 3,000 jihadists in Tunisia, 2,500 in Saudi Arabia, 1,500 in Morocca, 930 in France, and over 800 in Russia. In Europe, the number of fighters ranges from 930 in France to less than 50 in Ireland. In the United States there are about 100 fighters as well. Many Muslims from European countries have also travelled to Syria and Iraq to fight with ISIL. Syria ISIL s base in Raqqa, Syria is extremely important when addressing this issue. The conditions in Syria that allowed ISIL to obtain this base as well as the implications of this gain are notable and worrying. An ongoing civil war in Syria has weakened the government, making it more susceptible to the influence of insurgent groups. ISIL took the weakened state as an opportunity to control almost one-third of Syria. Delegates will undoubtedly have to address ISIL s activity in Syria. History of the Syrian Civil War The Assad Regime After Syria gained independence in 1946, there was a struggle for power for many years. Eventually, Bashar al Assad assumed the position of power. Bashar was able to bring modern society to Syria through technology, but struggled to fix Syria s deep-rooted economic troubles. The economy was state-controlled and corruption in the government made privatization in any way extremely difficult. The international affairs during Bashar s presidency followed suit. It has been asserted that Bashar upheld his father s foreign policy, which maintained a poor relationship with Israel and Turkey, military occupation in Lebanon, and support to militant groups. Bashar has been criticized for his relationship with Al Qaeda and ISIL during his presidency. He has been said to believe that Islamic fighters could be manipulated to assist the Syrian government. 7 During the Iraq War, the Syrian government was accused of training jihad fighters before they entered Iraq. Bashar has also been noted for human rights violations during his presidency, including the torture and imprisonment of political opponents, harsh suppression of dissent, and blocking of social media sites. First Stages of the Uprising Successful uprisings in Tunisia inspired other Arab nations, notably Egypt, Libya, and Yemen, to speak out against their oppressive governments. These protests, known collectively as the Arab Spring, inspired many in Syria. Assad supported the Arab Spring in other nations, but expressed confidence that Syria would not face similar protests. He continued to speak of reforms, but made it clear they would not appear for another generation. Fringe groups of protesters in all these countries shared some of ISIL s values. In early 2011, Assad began to employ pro-regime militias, known as the shabiha, to break apart protests. In their attempts, they often killed unarmed protesters. These groups, which were not directly connected to the government, allowed them to commit violence without having to take responsibility. Opposition groups formed in response to the violence. There were groups on local, city, and national levels. The Local Coordinating Council (LCC) worked to organize protests on a local level. They used social media to raise awareness and document protests and violence. On a city level, Revolutionary Councils formed to provide strategies for the revolution. They collected LCC footage to distribute it internationally and gain world-wide awareness and support. The Syrian Revolution general Commission (SRGC) was founded to represent the movement on a national level. Although these revolutionaries were generally moderate, Islamic extremists were always in the mix. 5

6 Militarization Due to the increasing size of protests across the nation, Assad implemented military units in places where protests movements were considered threatening. Now the protesters faced tanks, artillery, gun ships, helicopters, and jets which had been supplied by Russia and Iran. In these areas, civil, unarmed protesters were fired at by the government military, rather than what had before been pro-regime militias. It was common at this point for soldiers to quit the military in order to protest the regime themselves. Seven former Syrian military officers created the Free Syrian Army (FSA) as a military organization formed to protect unarmed Syrian civilians and protesters in July They worked with peaceful protest movements during the beginning of its formation, but split away as the opposition became more radical and the peaceful protests were overshadowed. The FSA grew in size over the summer of 2011, gaining 20,000 fighters. 8 Assad began to employ the government militia and the shabiha in fighting the FSA. They killed many FSA fighters and civilians, in one instance, on May 25, 2012, killing 108 people, 41 of whom were children, at one time. 8 Militarization of the conflict made groups such as LCCs and Revolutionary Councils take a back seat in this issue, and militant groups such as ISIL began to lead the armed movement. Human Rights Violations and Humanitarian Crisis As the violence continued to escalate during this time, the nation was declared to be in a civil war. In June 2013, the death toll, as estimated by the UN, was 90,000 people. By 2014, the death toll was 191,369 people. 9 Both sides of the conflict have been charged with war crimes, including murder, torture, and rape. Many other human rights violations by both the rebels and governments have occurred during these violent times as well including restricted access to food, water, and health services. The government has been accused by Western powers with firing chemical weapons, which resulted in the death of hundreds, while the regime and Russia continue to blame this attack on the rebels. The US threatened military intervention due to the chemical weapons, so Assad agreed to destroy the chemical weapons arsenal with the help of the UN and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. The conflict has caused a humanitarian crisis. Around 6.5 million people are displaced within Syria and 3 million people are said to have fled Syria. This has put a huge burden on neighboring countries, specifically Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq, and Turkey, who struggle to accommodate the refugees million people need humanitarian assistance; however, 4.6 million of these people are in places that are difficult to access. State of Syria Today The conflict in Syria remains unsettled. The number of deaths increases each day along with the number of displaced people. The Geneva II Conference on Syria was held in early 2014 in order to talk about the future of Syria. It aimed to end the Syrian Civil War by creating dialogue between the government and opposition groups in order to form a transitional government, although their goals have yet to be achieved. It has become clear that with the Assad regime in power, Syria holds no hope of restoration. Internationally, countries stances on the situation differ. Russia and Iran continue to support the Assad regime, whereas Western Powers, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar support opposition groups. This difference of opinion has made it difficult to establish international policy. The Security Council cannot pass resolutions due to the fact that Russia holds veto power. 6

7 Recently, families continue to seek refuge in nearby countries, even nations as far away as Germany, as the population of refugee camps in these areas doubles. With an influx of people, most nations struggle to accommodate them. Delegates should take the state of refugees into account in committee. Syria and ISIL As the conflict continues to develop, Islamic extremist groups have been taking advantage of the unstable state of Syria. They have been expanding their power throughout Syria, and without a stable and functioning internal government to dismantle them, eradicating ISIL is a near-impossible task. ISIL threatens the lives of many living in Syria. Those living in Syria near ISIL live each day in fear. ISIL has been known to crack down on those who express dissent as they continue to capture and kill activists, non-governmental organization workers and journalists. They have forced over 100,000 refugees to enter Turkey as they took control of Kobani, a Kurdish town on the border of Turkey. 9 ISIL is fighting against the Syrian Government; however, they prioritize building their own state, attempting to achieve this through terrorization tactics. The group benefits from Syria s natural resources, such as oil. The state of Syria plays a large role in the issue of ISIL, making it extremely important to address when making decisions about ISIL. Stabilizing Syria and eradicating ISIL may very well go hand in hand. ISIL, The U.S, and other Western Countries The biggest threat that ISIL poses for the U.S, Canada, and other non Muslim nations is its ability to recruit teens and adults alike into its organization. Originally, ISIL had no intention of recruiting westerners, but it has now become a priority for them. And this recruitment is becoming ever-easier, especially with social media. According to CIA estimates, about 2,000 Westerners have traveled to Iraq and Syria (many via Turkey) to join ISIS. Of these, more than 100 have come from the US, at least 500 from the UK, and more than 700 from France, according to estimates from authorities in those countries. ISIL s message: join us or die. How is ISIL doing it? The first is its appeal to a sense of identity. Many western youths who have no sense of belong are targets for ISIL s recruitment. Although it is evident to us that ISIL s sense of meaning is illogical, it gives these outsider youths a sense of purpose in their lives. Western, mainstream media has a reputation of creating images linking Islam and terrorism. Especially throughout the War on Terror, problems have arisen regarding discrimination directed towards the Muslim community. The false notion that all Muslims are terrorists has unfortunately taken root in Europe and the USA, which exacerbates tensions between current coexisting Christian and Muslim communities. Along with the ever-present Isreali-Palistine conflict, it is up to you delegates, to address this discrimination, and think of solutions to alleviate these homeland pressures. Richard Barrett of The Soufan Group describes it as, The general picture provided by foreign fighters of their lives in Syria suggests camaraderie, good morale and purposeful activity, all mixed in with a sense of understated heroism, designed to attract their friends as well as to boost their own self-esteem. 10 Many scholars also have repeatedly said that this sense of purpose is highlighted by the success of ISIL s military battles. ISIL is also getting many recruiters from its sophisticated internet propaganda. Many authorities believe the internet is helpful in finding terrorists in the U.S. and other western countries. However, the internet also hinders their efforts for capturing these illegal terrorists by making it easier to recruit members into ISIS. 7

8 And according to Matthew Olsen, director of the National Counterterrorism Center, ISIL now operates the most sophisticate propaganda machine of any terrorist organization. 11 This sophistication is seen in the recent beheading video of U.S. journalist James Foley released by the Islamic State on Tuesday because of the video s HD quality and professional editing skills. The mission statement of AlHayat Media Center, the Islamic State s news organization, is to convey the message of the Islamic State in different languages with the aim of unifying Muslims under one flag. 12 ISIL has it s own twitter, youtube, and online magazinebasically all forms of social media available today. These accounts show things from violent attacks, to young men eating Halal food, which was shown recently in their youtube series. ISIL encourages its members to keep up with their social media tactics for recruitment and create their own social media accounts. This also helps connect the recruiters with the recruitments, by allowing them to ask basic questions about joining the organization such as concerning flights or places to stay once they reach the country.some other questions include asking about bringing spouses and what should be done if they want to join but have a personal disability. Another way that ISIL is successful in its recruitment is its appeal to a sense of religious obligation. The newest recruitment policy for ISIL is to target teenage girls. Just last week, the organization launched a program called Al-Zawara which specifically targets teenage girls through media platforms. The campaign aims to teach girl domestic jobs such as cooking and cleaning, all the way to radical skills such as using weapons. 12 How are countries stopping ISIL? Some are increasing surveillance and cancelling passports of suspected militants, such as Austria and the UK. However, cancelling passports may lead to a range of problems such as racial profiling, which western countries advocate against. Secretary Theresa May, told her party conference here on Tuesday that she wanted new powers to prevent those suspected of Islamic radicalism from using social media, while pressing for legislation, already announced, to give the police the power to seize passports at the border from Britons suspected of traveling to join Islamic radicals. 12 She has already taken 25 passports of Britons who were planning on traveling to Syria. However, this also makes Muslims feel as though their whole communities are being targeted, especially because some people may have family in Syria and have perfectly legitimate reasons for wanting to travel there. Ms. May wants to focus on discouraging young people from even traveling to Syria. This can be achieved through counter social media organizations. Mainly, she hopes to stress the fact that there are no penalties for young people who have considered going to Syria for ISIL (however for adults it is illegal to fight for terrorist groups). This is stated to try to keep the young people from thinking it s too late to come back to the country after they have decided to join ISIS. Many countries such as France, Turkey and Britain are working to help place emphasis on identifying people who have returned from Syria. They believe that once people come back from experiencing first hand the supreme terrorists organizations, they have a new violent outlook on various governmental policies. They ve lost their bearings, they are extraordinarily violent and represent a real potential of risk for the country 8

9 when they come back, 12 Mr. Cazeneuve, France s minister described. However, like racial profiling, this technique of stopping terrorists in the country violates human rights. Some of the liberal democrats in the country stated that they would, continue to oppose the obsessive intrusion into people s lives. Like Ms. May, Humara Khan, an executive director of Muflehun, is working to help spread awareness to teens about the dangers of joining ISIL. Muflehun is a Washington D.C Muslim based organization that works to prevent radicalism. This organization is working to counter ISIL s messages which are geared at young teens by monitoring social media to understand the process of radicalization. This organization also helps organize workshops for teens and adults to gain more knowledge about the recruitment process. For teens, the workshops help explain the difference between websites for legitimate facts about Islam faith to websites that are geared towards recruiting people into ISIS. For parents, the workshop helps parents try to protect their children from the radicals on the internet. The workshops helps indicate certain traits in children that may greaten their interest in joining ISIS. Drug and alcohol use are two indications from parents that a child is more at risk of joining ISIS. The United States on a more national level is also helping to try to prevent teens from joining ISIL. Countering ISIL s social media attacks, the State Department released a video highlighting the radicalness of ISIL by showing videos of the organization burning Mosques and murdering members of the Islamic faith. This program is known as Think Again. Turn Away. Many people believe that this will help prevent teens from joining ISIL, but will have no effect on a teen who has already committed himself or herself to the organization. Part of this problem is the people who are already in Syria woking for ISIL know that if they were to return home to their country they would be put in jail. Professionals are trying to figure out how to get around this problem, because their main goal is to get these people home. President Obama is also working closely with this issue. He and David Cameron, the prime minister of Britain and the leader of the Conservative party, have formed a core coalition of ten nations to counter the threat posed by ISIL. What are they thinking about doing to stop ISIL? They first aspect is they are considering their military options. Right now, the US is conducting limited airstrikes on specific areas that are known to contain ISIL organizations in Iraq. This a very risky approach to the issue. The US is also considering expanding airstrikes across the border because targeting a specific area in Iraq could simply lead to the organization regrouping. However, although these strikes are risky, the US and the Uk have both released statements saying that the airstrikes are successful. The US and the UK are also considering various political options. This includes talking about peace with Syria. The US and UK are also discussing bringing together conflicted nation because of their shared enemy of Syria and Iraq. The US is particularly focused on a third option, which would be to tackle the problem through financial means. THe US carefully monitors financial flows moving throughout the region. The US is considering targeting ISIL s financial source, although this is getting increasingly more difficult as the organization expands. Conclusion ISIL is affecting the international community through threats waging terror. While most people are frightened by the terrorist group, some are compelled by the group s message and have committed themselves to fighting with ISIL. The UN hasn t yet settled on a definitive strategy to tackle ISIL. The issue is awash in uncertainty, and many 9

10 countries think the UN needs to act in spite of that uncertainty. ISIL is expanding. They are recruiting more and more people to a violent, extremist ideology. Jihadism wrongly twists Islam into an excuse for violence. Even so, some of you will represent ISIL s interests or similarly radical interests. Some of you must put yourselves in the shoes of someone who has only ever known radical Islam. We don t expect delegates to come to a final solution to halt the expansion of ISIL. Rather, we hope that by examining the problem from your group s perspective, you will come away with a better understanding of the conflict as a whole. Questions to Consider 1. How would you confront the issues in Syria in refer ence to the expansion of ISIL? 2. What can the UN do to address the areas already under ISIL control? 3. How do you plan on combating ISIL in Iraq? (Remember to consider national sovereignty when addressing these issues) 5. How do you plan on stopping the physical spread of ISIL throughout the Middle East? 6. What are your plans for combating ISIL recruitment in western nations and the Middle East? 7. What can the UN do to prevent anti-semitism in Western nations, specifically against Muslims? 8. What can we do about protecting innocents involved in conflict? 9. How to get involved? 10

11 Delegates Syria Turkey Lebanon Libya Egypt Afghanistan Yemen India Australia Canada Israel Germany Iraq Russia U.S.A. United Kingdom France China ISIL Al-Qaeda 11

12 Works Cited 1. Wählisch, Martin. EU Terrorist Listing. An Overview about Listing and Delisting Procedures (n.d.): n. pag. Berghof Foundation. Berghof Foundation for Peace Support. Web. 14 Feb , Number 20 June. Number 20 June 2014 Research NOTES (n.d.): n. pag. The Washington Institute for Near East Policies. Web. 14 Feb Baghdad Blast Kills 10 at Jordanian Embassy. CNN.com. N.p., 07 Aug Web. 14 Feb Syrian Observatory For Human Rights Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. Syrian Observatory For Human Rights. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Feb Video shows Islamic State executes scores of Syrian soldiers. Reuters. 28 August Yourish, Karen. The Fates of 23 ISIS Hostages in Syria. The New York Times. The New York Times, 23 Oct Web. 12 Feb Dettmer, Jamie. Is Al Qaeda Aiding Bashar Al-Assad? The Daily Beast. Newsweek/Daily Beast, 18 Feb Web. 14 Feb < 8. Al-Saleh, Asaad. Dissecting an Evolving Conflict: The Syrian Uprising and the Future of the Country. Ed. Loren White. Dissecting an Evolving Conflict: (n.d.): n. pag. Institution for Social Policy and Understanding. June Web. 14 Feb < 9. Besieged/Hard to Access Areas. Syria Crisis Overview. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Feb < 10. Erlanger, Steven. Europe Tries to Stop Flow of Citizens Joining Jihad. The New York Times. The New York Times, 30 Sept Web. 14 Feb < html?_r=1>. 11. Matthew Olsen on ISIS and Al-Qaeda Threat. C-SPAN.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Feb < video/? %2fmatthew-olsen-isis-alqaeda-threat>. 12. Saul, Heather. What Can Be Done to Stop Isis? The Options That Cameron and Obama May Be considering. The Independent. Independent Digital News and Media, 09 Sept Web. 14 Feb < news/world/middle-east/what-can-be-done-to-stop-isis-the-options-that-cameron-and-obama-may-be-considering html>. Pictures Call Them ISIL. Times of Israel. N.p., n.d. Web. < Call-them-ISIS-ISIL-or...-web.jpg>. 12