Posted on 06/09/2015 2:26:45 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
The feeling is growing in the international commentariat that the Islamic State may win: That the group will continue to gain territory in Syria and Iraq and will consolidate a permanent government, a state ensconced in the Islamic caliphate its leadership has proclaimed. I ended a recent article on a note of bravado, writing that in spite of its successes on the battlefield and elsewhere, it remains all but certain that Islamic State will ultimately be ground up and destroyed. Today I am less certain, and I have started to imagine what would happen if ISIS actually prevails.
I am reconsidering for a simple reason: U.S. Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter's contention that the Iraqi government's military forces show "no will to fight." In a June 1 editorial titled "Who's willing to fight for Iraq?" the New York Times suggested that if Baghdad's military is unwilling or unable to defeat ISIS - if it is outgunned, out-organized, out-strategized and, one must add, terrorized by ISIS savagery - outsiders should stay out. No boots on the ground, no escalation of air strikes; let us limit wasted resources.
What would result from an ISIS victory? First, an official Sunni Muslim state would be consolidated, straddling the post-World War I Sykes-Picot Syria-Iraq border whose very existence exemplifies for the Islamic State how Middle Eastern geopolitics was unilaterally rearranged by European powers. The battlefield would decide exactly how much of Syria and how much of Iraq would fall under the state's control. In Iraq, the Islamic State would incorporate all Arab Sunni areas, beginning with Anbar, the largest Iraqi province. Kurdistan would be left alone, at least for the time being. The Peshmerga army, beefed up by the United States and highly motivated because the Kurdish fighters are defending their own territory...
(Excerpt) Read more at realclearworld.com ...
obama and his crowd will pop the champaign corks
Dunno. What party is in charge in Israel right now?
Are the Saudis hoping ISIS will gain permanent control over a large territory (which probably means further expansion south and eventual death or poverty for most of the Saudi royal family), or are they counting on the United States to save their bacon? They have to know we are led by at best a gutless sissy, and more likely by someone who is cheering for ISIS. ISIS will not stop at Iraq, or Iraq and Syria; ISIS will take Iran and Saudi Arabia once they consolidate territory. My hope is that Saudi Arabia will enter the war soon with their air power and their armor. Otherwise, this will be a nightmare by the time we have a real president and Commander-in-Chief.
That relationship would mirror the Iraq-Iran frictions since the 70's. Considering both entities are headed by reactionaries it would likely be a perpetual conflict.
The downside is that an extremely agressive hostile state would exist closer to Israel's borders. I have no doubt that Israel can clean their clocks but unless they go unconventional, there will be a heavy price paid by Israel.
Win? they aren’t going to stop. Their idea of winning is when the whole world bows down 5 times a day and wears a burka or a beard.
Maybe the international commentariat should step up instead of waiting for the U.S. military under Obola to do all the heavy lifting.
yep, my vote is ‘leave out of loop’
That is indeed the long-range problem.
Those crazy SOBs will keep going until they've overrun the globe. There is enough of them to make a good stab at that goal, too.
Picture Hamas-led Palestine on crack cocaine and armed to the teeth.
It means a big giant war with Iran.
Functionally there is only one party.
So which team should win? Sunni or Shia?
Add the new ISIL to North Korea, Iran, Syria, etc, and we have a communists killing empire that will be our worst nightmare once the tearing of America starts. We are on the cusp of something real bad.
Of course they can win. Nobody of any substance is trying to stop them.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
..................
I'm sure once our President comes up with a policy things will change. Coming up with policies takes time, years sometimes.
ø: Index finger up for his brethren.
[snip] ...the New York Times suggested that if Baghdad's military is unwilling or unable to defeat ISIS -- if it is outgunned, out-organized, out-strategized and, one must add, terrorized by ISIS savagery -- outsiders should stay out. No boots on the ground, no escalation of air strikes; let us limit wasted resources. [/snip]
Iraqi Shiite militia commander threatens to attack US
Long War Journal | June 9, 2015 | By Bill Roggio
Posted on 06/10/2015 1:24:20 PM PDT by Brad from Tennessee
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/3298912/posts
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.