The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria is more than a terrorist group. They are functioning as a state governing a region, according to James F. Jeffrey of The Washington Institute and Johns Hopkins University professor Daniel Serwer.
Jeffrey and Serwer joined foreign policy experts in a panel on Oct. 27 to discuss how ISIS has garnered power in recent months and the U.S.’ strategy for combatting it. Hosted by Delta Phi Epsilon Professional Foreign Service Sorority, panelists included Jeffrey of the foreign policy think tank The Washington Institute, professor Tricia Bacon from the School of Public Affairs and Serwer from Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies.
“ISIS is not, in terms of its basic ideology or theology, totally out of left field. It represents one interpretation of Islam, as a transcendental force,” Jeffery said.
Instead of immediately organizing terror attacks, ISIS is more focused on capturing land, resources and territory in the hopes of creating a caliphate Islamic state, according to Serwer.
“The fight here is between a transnational movement and the nation-state system,” Serwer said, “I think we unfortunately have failed to take that fight as seriously as we might have before it has exploded into full view.”
ISIS is growing in size and power because of its ability to attract a wide following, Jeffrey said. All around the world there are disaffected people that want to be a part of something bigger than themselves, and ISIS offers them that chance.
Jeffrey said the weak nation-state system in the Middle East is a weak system.
“They have very, very weak roots and they are challenged by this transcendental, transformative, alternate view. That means ISIS, with its advocacy of that view, but more importantly, its military success, its success at holding ground and, to some degree, its ideology, which is aimed specifically at heretics, has extraordinary appeal, that’s what makes it dangerous,” Jeffery said.
The conversation then shifted to the proper ways of combating the threat and the current administration. Serwer criticized the Obama administration's response to ISIS and how it has labeled it a terrorist organization.
“President Obama is simply wrong when he calls ISIS a terrorist group, and his analytical statement leads him to a wrong conclusion that you fight it with counter terrorism methods,” Serwer said.
Since ISIS governs certain areas of Iraq and Syria, this separates them from most terrorists, according to Serwer.
“What we have in ISIS is not a terrorist group. It is a group with a pretension to becoming a state, but more than a pretension because it is in fact governing in areas of Syria and Iraq today,” Serwer said.
Bacon disagreed with Serwer and Jeffrey about characterizing ISIS as a state and not a terrorist group.
“I don't disagree that ISIS has a lot of characteristics that are like a state, but I don't think that it precludes that it’s also a terrorist organization,” Bacon said.
Following each speaker’s remarks, students in the audience asked the panel questions about the future of the region, and the U.S.’ strategies for dealing with its uncertainty. The question that gave the most spirited response from the panel concerned the State Department’s “Think Again Turn Away” campaign to deter possible ISIS volunteers from becoming radicalized.
“It’s bulls***, Jeffrey said, “There’s a problem that goes far beyond ISIS and far beyond the Middle East.”
Jeffrey described his own feelings of about violence as a veteran, claiming humans have violent tendencies and want to be a part of a group or cause.
“If you have ever been in a combat situation you can see human beings love it, I love it. And that is something that has to be dealt with, and you can’t deal with it with the modern equivalent of the ‘just say no, don’t do drugs’ campaign. Essentially ISIS attracts people by saying we will make you something like the marines do.” Jeffery said.
To close the panel, Serwer addressed the student audience about how it will be up to them to deal with the next set of foreign policy problems.
“Your generation will face enormous challenges arising from the challenge from the westphalian order in the Middle East,” Serwer said. “I am delighted to see such a big audience of folks to begin to worry about what this means for your next 10, 20 and 30 years.”
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