Weakening ISIS requires eroding the support it relies on from tribal leaders, military figures, and ordinary Iraqi Sunnis. Here’s how to do it without bombs.
Six Steps Short of War to Beat ISIS
read more
Iraq
Like Bush With Iraq, President Obama Seeks Coalition to Fight Islamic State
But a state other than the United States might be a better choice to assume operational leadership.
From Schools to Shelters in Iraq
Yazidi refugees in Iraqi Kurdistan now sleep in classrooms, hallways, and the courtyards of facilities intended for children’s education. What happens when school starts?
Five Ways the U.S. Enabled the Islamic State
Contradictory U.S. policies, as with Al Qaeda a generation ago, have aided and abetted the development of the Islamic State.
How Wide Does President Obama’s “Range of Options” on the Islamic State Extend?
The expansion of the Islamic State is not a problem for the United States to solve alone.
Almost as Surprising as Islamic State’s Explosive Growth: Its Baath Military Leadership
The spirit of Saddam Hussein lives on in the Islamic State.
The Smiling Face of the Islamic State
IS, formerly ISIS, elicits cult-like behavior in its followers and those it conquers.
Why Washington’s War on Terror Failed
Washington sabotaged its own “war on terror” by destabilizing the Middle East even as it coddled the U.S. allies who were actually sponsoring terrorism.
Rise of ISIS Downfall of Maliki
Iraq Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has driven Sunnis into the arms of ISIS.
Bombing the Caliphate
U.S. airstrikes are just the kind of outside force that will keep ISIS strong and unified.