Iraq’s second city of Mosul looks like a model of success for its new rulers from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant
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The Isis economy: Meet the new boss - FT.com - 0 views
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But in the back alleys, litter fills the streets. The lights stay on, but only because locals rigged up generators themselves. And under the blare of café televisions, old men grumble about life under Isis’s self-proclaimed caliphate.
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Sunni Muslims in both countries have long felt discriminated against by regimes dominated by rival sects
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without an economy that gives people a chance to make a living, many say Isis has little more to offer
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“Compared to past rulers, Isis is a lot easier to deal with. Just don’t piss them off and they leave you alone,” says Mohammed, a trader from Mosul. “If they could only maintain services — then people would support them until the last second.”
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“They’re operating like something between a mafia, an insurgency and a terror group. Maybe they thought six months ago they were going to function as a state. But they don’t have the personnel or manpower.”
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volunteers handing out sacks of wheat stamped with their black and white seal. They even announced plans to issue a currency,
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In some cases they say Isis takes credit for systems in place before it seized power. In others, locals say it is stealing the resources of the region it seeks to rule
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Travellers must stock up on Iraqi dinars to use in Iraq, US dollars for the road and Syrian pounds once they arrive.
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services continue to function because of the money Baghdad still pays to former civil servants in Mosul. Isis taxes those employees at up to 50 per cent of their salaries.
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It is as if Isis is financing itself partly through a pyramid scheme, and this has begun to falter.”
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Though many now question Isis’s economic management, its military prowess and organisational skills are clear.
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Isis allows easy movement through its territories to facilitate trade. Trucks passing through are taxed about 10 per cent of the value of their cargo.
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From the Levant to Libya, This Is How You Beat ISIS - The Daily Beast - 0 views
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What a waste of space. All this article says is that, "we must fight ISIS in a way that divides them." It is however my first read that has been about ISIS in Libya, since I was originally more focused on Syria. I would like to see how that turns out, especially since the US is to responsible for this in my opinion. I want to see if the US will wash its hands of this conflict after killing Gaddafi, or if there will be real attempts to stop ISIS in Libya.
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Davutoglu: Failure to support democracy led to ISIL Anadolu Agency - 0 views
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The rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant is caused by the world's failure to support democracy in the Middle East,
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" ISIL now exists because we did not properly support the democratic transition processes in 2012, not becauseISIL is so strong or the Syrian and Iraqi people are aligned to ISIL-like radical acts."
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"We welcomed the Arab Spring when it first began to flourish as we thought the EU and the U.S. would support and finance the Middle East just as they did for the wind of democracy in the Balkans,"
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Davutoglu said countries like Poland and Romania now enjoy democracy due to finance from the EU but, he added, "no state came up to finance democracy in the Middle East."
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"Islamic communities that have a deep-rooted culture of politics have the capacity, like any other nation and religion, to both keep democracy alive and improve it,” he added. “Neither Islam nor the world of Islam can be correlated with entities like ISIL."
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Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu spoke at the World Economic Forum about the world's lack of assistance in the transition to democracy in the Middle East and how that ultimately facilitated the birth of ISIL. He explains how a number of EU states were able to maneuver into the democratic realm with the assistance and guidance of the EU, illuminating the idea that the Middle East should be no different. Davutoglu condemns the west for abandoning Middle Eastern states in their dire time of need. While countries around the world supported the Arab Spring, they did nothing to support or finance it to success. He says it would be wrong to correlate the birth of ISIL with Islam, explaining how Islamic communities are perfectly capable of embracing democratic systems. However, assistance in its implementation is vital.
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Tripoli-backed fighters sent to Sirte to confront ISIL - 4 views
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ANNE R. PIERCE: Beware ISIS strategy that fortifies Russia, Iran, and Syria - Washingto... - 0 views
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Demonstration of united resolve against blood-thirsty terrorists whose ranks, ambitions and territory have grown exponentially is important
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forging strategy to battle ISIS without also forging strategy to thwart Syria, Russia and Iran is a terrible mistake
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brutality and aggression of the Islamic State, he still whitewashes the brutality and aggression of established states Syria, Russia and Iran, and still ignores the need for grand strategy to deal with them
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potentially, an even greater threat to the “free world” than ISIS. Because they are terror sponsors and supporters, WMD in their control means WMD out of control, susceptible to being sold or given to fanatics who are willing to work for their cause
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working with the Iranian, Russian and Syrian regimes to address Middle Eastern problems and fight ISIS is a sure way to alienate Middle Eastern moderates and traditional partner
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Russia’s staunch support of Syria and Iran; its ruthless aggression in Ukraine; and its expansionist designs in Eastern Europe, should make containing Russia an American foreign policy priority
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Instead, much of the White House plan for combating ISIS plays right into Syrian, Iranian and Russian hands, for it revolves around their plans –which include allowing Assad to stay in power, legitimizing Russian-sponsored “peace conferences” that buy Assad time and raise Putin’s stature, accommodating the Iranian nuclear program, and giving Iran the lead in the battle against ISIS and in the Levant.
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the United States has been mostly passive, while Russia, Iran and its proxies, and al Qaeda-affiliated terrorists, have seized the day.
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opened the door to extremist groups eager to hijack the Syrian revolt and/or defend the Syrian regime
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While the Obama administration justified its unwillingness to give meaningful aid to Syrian rebels with fear of helping extremists within rebel ranks, that stance allowed extremism within Syria to metastasize
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Russia provided cover for Syria in the UN, and supplied many of the very weapons Assad uses to massacre civilian
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President Obama and Secretary Kerry have backed even further away from demands that Assad leave, while even the goal of a transitional government which characterized the previous talks has been dropped
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Turkey to let Iraqi Kurds join Kobane battle - 3 views
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Turkey has said it will allow Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga fighters to cross its borders and join Syrian Kurdish forces battling the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in the Syrian town of Kobane. The reported shift in Turkish policy came after a phone call between US President Barack Obama and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
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Syria after Assad: Heading toward a Hard Fall? - The Washington Institute for Near East... - 0 views
www.washingtoninstitute.org/...sad-heading-toward-a-hard-fall
syria post-assad heading institute outcome
shared by alarsso on 16 Feb 15
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new opportunities for external actors, especially Iran and Hizballah, both of which would seek allies among the former regime's Alawite security elite
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Reckless onslaught could aid ISIL, military warns - 0 views
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Presidential candidates and hawkish members of Congress are stepping up their cries for more robust military action against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant - but Pentagon leaders and government terrorism advisers caution that a reckless escalation of the war could help the group recruit disaffected Muslims around the world.
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How serious is the ISIL threat in Libya? - 1 views
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The recent US air strike on a building in the western Libyan city of Sabrata, which killed more than 40 suspected Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters, highlights the growing expansion and danger of the group in Libya. Both ISIL and Gaddafi loyalists share the belief that the new political leaders in Libya are "agents of the West" brought to power by NATO. Sirte has become the first stronghold that ISIL totally controls outside of Iraq and Syria, and it is reportedly home to the group's strongest presence within Libya. For the Western powers to combat this, means many military airstrikes as well as working with Libyan forces to provide intelligence of the whereabouts of the ISIL powers