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ISIS Compare And Contrast Essay

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On the surface, both ISIS and Taliban appear to be very similar, but in reality, the only commonality shared by both groups is that they are Sunni Islamic fundamentalists. ISIS is a militant group that follows an extremist and minoritarian interpretation of Islam and promotes religious violence. The main aim of ISIS is to create a word wide caliphate led by a supreme religious leader called a caliph, who is believed to be the successor of Prophet Muhammad. All Muslims should pledge allegiance to the Caliphate. As of December 2015, the IS controls a landlocked territory incorporating western Iraq and eastern Syria. It is believed to be operational in 18 countries worldwide, including Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Whereas the Taliban in Afghanistan is a political movement …show more content…

This correlation follows from Julius Caesar’s conception of ideas that ideas shape interests. This can be related to the case of ISIS. ISIS calls for the establishment of a caliphate yet behind this romantic ideal is the desire to affirm its Sunni Islamic identity. Islam followers are divided along the Sunni-Shia line, and ISIS does not perceive the Shias as “true Muslims”. Indeed, former leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi held a genocidal worldview: Shias are infidels – “a fifth column in the heart of Islam that must either convert or be exterminated”. Furthermore, when Zarqawi was still the leader of ISIS, his goal was to “trigger all-out sectarian war and to position AQI (Al-Qaeda in Iraq, which subsequently evolved to become ISIS) as the champion of the embattled Sunnis”. He had also on many occasions ignored his mentor, Osama bin Laden’s pleas to stop indiscriminate killing of Shia. Current leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi inherited this worldview. He depicted ISIS as the vanguard of persecuted Sunni Arabs. It is for this reason that ISIS today continues to launch waves of attacks against the

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