The Terrorist Group ISIS Free Essay Example, 750 words

ï » ¿The Terrorist Group ISIS 1. Topic The rise of the pan Middle East terrorist group ISIS has given way to a new twist to the geopolitics in the region. Considering the committed cadre of ISIS, one is poised to question as to whether democracy and liberal Western thought are the two antidotes to rising militancy in the Middle East. This question is of immense importance not merely for the international political community, but also for the students of international politics who are affiliated to realism and liberal Western politics. 2. Literature Review One is bound to question in the current times as to whether the rise of ISIS in Iraq and the neighboring states is a consequence of the liberal Western democracy or is a consequence of the existent vacuum in the Islamic ideology in the region (Weiss & Hassan, 2015). The ideology of ISIS is indeed a diabolical anti-thesis to all the political values that affiliate to the terms inclusive, liberal and pluralist. The kind of Islamic values that the ISIS caters to which includes beheading of the Western journalists and political opponents, large scale killing of civilian populations, sex slavery imposed on women and forced conversions is indeed something that is an anathema to democracy and Western liberal thought (Stern & Berger, 2015). We will write a custom essay sample on The Terrorist Group ISIS or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now One is poised to question as to whether the rise of ISIS is an outcome of the failure of liberal Western democracy or whether it is owing to a scarcity of democratic inclinations in the region. The answer is no if one considers ISIS as the inhumane credentials of this terrorist group have a lot to do with age old sectarian violence and violent politics rampant in the region (Cockburn, 2015). The answer is yes if one considers radical Western groups like the National Front Party France that has been kept distant from the mainstream political framework owing to the prevalence of liberal Western democracy in France. 3. Statement of Significance The enquiry into the rise of terrorist group ISIS is of great significance as the kind of politics it connotes is something that is set to evince aspirationalism in a radical context, is bound to be pan-Arab and is based on concrete territorial and power grabbing motives. The kind of radical challenge that ISIS poses to Western democracies is something that was rarely seen in the past, even if one takes into consideration Iran or North Korea for that matter. 4. Research Question This paper intends to answer as to whether the promulgation of Western style liberal democracy and political values in the Middle East is an apt antidote to ISIS or whether ISIS is a direct outcome of the sectarian politics immanent in the region since long? 5. Hypothesis The irony is that the solution to this research question is multifaceted and far from being simple. No doubt, the Western style political democracy, inclusiveness and diversity can succeed in the region provided that attempts are made by the local political states and power structures to bring about some sort of reconciliation in the long standing sectarian animosities in the region. The Western style democracy in the region could also succeed in bringing a halt to the onward march of ISIS, provided the Western should also care to resolve the long standing issues like the Arab-Israel animosity, a challenge that has distinct Western linkages and outcrops. 6. Research Data and Methodology I will use an array of methods to seek a viable and pragmatic answer to this question. First I will look into the sectarian history of the region by researching the varied primary sources contrived by the British and French writers and the writers affiliated to varied other colonial powers that remained active in the region and played an important part in the regional politics. I will also look into the rise of militant Islam in the region and the sectarian linkages of the Islamic radicalism rampant in the region by consulting the available primary sources, compiled by writers who have elaborately and painstakingly researched the rise of terrorism and radicalism in the region. Besides, I will also delve on the available and existent secondary sources to constitute a broad perspective on the terrorist groups operating in the region and what constituted and aided the rise and power of ISIS. I will also look into the Western contribution to the general failure of democracy in the Midd le East and how it abated militancy in the region. Besides, I will also research the causes of popular dissent and resentment in the region, the Western and regional response to it, Arab spring and how it led to the rise and proliferation of ISIS in the region. The whole objective is to analyze as to whether Western style liberal democracy is an answer to this popular dissent and festering sectarianism in the region, or whether ISIS is something to which the West has no answer. Bibliography Andrew, T.W. (2014). Understanding the Strengths and Vulnerabilities of ISIS. Parameters, 44(3), 12-30. Bonner, M. (2006). Jihad in Islamic History. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. Cockburn, P. (2015). The Rise of Islamic State. New York: LeftWord. Cole, J. (2014). The New Arabs. New York: Simon & Schuster. Erlich, R. (2014). Inside Syria. New York: Prometheus Books. Glint, M. (2014). Can a War with ISIS be Won. New York: CreateSpace. Hall, M.C. , & River, C. (2013). The History of Syria. New York: CreateSpace. Harrison, R. (2014). Towards a Regional Strategy Contra ISIS. Parameters, 44(3), 37-53. Hashemi, N., & Postel, D. (2013). The Syria Dilemma. New York: MIT Press. Jones, S.J. , & Libicki, M. C. (2008). How Terrorist Groups End. Santa Monica, CA: Rand. Matthiesen, T. (2013). Sectarian Gulf. New York: Stanford University Press. Napoleoni, L. (2014). The Islamist Phoenix: The Islamic State and the Redrawing of Middle East. New York: Seven Stories Press. River, C. (2014). The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. New York: CreateSpace. Rogan, E. (2015). The Fall of the Ottomans. New York: Allen Lane. Sekulow, J. (2014). Rise of ISIS. New York: Simon & Schuster. Sorenson, D.S. (2014). Priming Strategic Communications: Countering the Appeal of ISIS. Parameters, 44(3), 25-49. Spark, J. (2014). ISIS Taking Over the Middle East. New York: CreateSpace. Stern, J. (2015). ISIS: The State of Terror. New York: Ecco. Wehrey, F. (2014). Sectarian Politics in the Gulf. New York: Columbia University Press. Weiss, M. and Hassan, H. (2015). ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror. New York: Regan Arts.