In the past few years, ISIS has become a major threat to the lives of people in the Middle East and the interest of the global community. In the recent months, they have escalated to large scale attacks such as the execution of 13 Kurds in May of this year. Their violent methods have struck terror into the hearts of many, prompting swift action by the global superpowers.
All of these inhumane acts beg the question: What is their goal? Thus far, their main goal seems to be to create a caliphate in the Middle East region. For those who do not know, a caliphate is a form of Islamic government and ISIS wishes to implement such a governance to create a new nation. This notion is not new, similar governments have existed in the world before but were abandoned long ago.
ISIS first became a major threat in 2014, with the successful invasion of Mosul, the 2nd largest city in Iraq. This pushed them to the top of the list of priority targets for many national powers because it meant that they were gaining power in crucial regions. Following the capture of this major city, they continued to move throughout the Middle East, gaining more and more land as they went. Their numbers have also been steadily increasing as their recruitment tactics have become very problematic. Using social media as their main way of promotion, they are targeting the younger population, attempting to lure them in with promises of a good life. Since the beginning of ISIS’ propaganda machine, there have been hundreds of reports of youth attempting to run away and join the ISIS campaign. World powers have been attempting to decrease the number of those joining ISIS as a result of social media but as a result of the vast network the Internet provides, this has proved very difficult.
This is also a problem because it gives those of the Islamic faith a bad name as ISIS claims to be doing this in the “interest of Islam.” However the majority of Muslims do not agree with their vile tactics. As ISIS continues to grow in power, world powers are doing all they can to stop them in their tracks before they become a viable to threat to countries as large as us.