The Mahdi Times June 2014 | Page 10

ISIS And Beyond by Anis Kotia Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (aka ISIS or Da'ish) and beyond Never in recent times has a revolutionary group such as ISIS taken the world's superpowers by such surprise. News stations and internet media sites have been covering this story with increasing relish as this band of seemingly rogue Islamist extremists grows in numbers and military prowess. A fictional writer could not really ask for more: break away Taliban group, turned rebels against Syria's Bashar al Assad, attracting supporters from all over the Western world, including Cardiff in the UK, citing slogans asking for the reestablishment of the Muslim caliphate of old; it has all the hallmarks of a Hollywood movie in the making. US president Barack Obama does not appear to have the courage to engage with this brand of militants who would not care a jot for any of his foreign policies. However, he realises that even though the Saudi regime had and probably still supports this group, it is only a matter of time before he will have to intervene, hence, Senator John Kerry's increasing demands to Arab leaders to stop ISIS from reaching a state which produces most of the world's oil yet has no army to def