ISIS: Caliphate or pretenders?

[unhappycamper]

http://atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/MID-02-220814.html



ISIS: Caliphate or pretenders?
By Muhammad Asim
Aug 22, '14

ISIS has been operating in both Syria and Iraq for a few years; however they have shot to prominence in June 2014 due to its claim of having established a caliphate on territory constituted from both countries. Whilst the caliphate is a revered institution in both in Islamic scholarship as well as the sentiment of the Muslim masses as cited by numerous polls, the claims of Islamic State of Iraq and Sria (ISIS), now calling itself Islamic State, have found only small pockets of support around the world.

A key discussion point has been the viability of the "state" declared by ISIS, particularly focussing on the aspect of security. ISIS asserts that the hard power of its authority as a caliphate is derived from the bayah (pledge of allegiance) sworn to it by the influential Sunni tribes in Iraq, giving it effective control of the territories of these tribes and beyond.

The Sunni tribes are known to be significant players in the region, being pivotal in the Anbar insurgency during the American occupation of Iraq and infamous for switching sides from al-Qaeda to help the American effort to drive them out of their lands.

Concerns of vulnerability to attack by foreign powers are addressed by drawing parallels with the historic Islamic State established in Medina in the 7th century, when the Muslims received the support of only two key tribes of the town. The great powers of the time were the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire and the Sassanid (Persian) Empire, which it is claimed that if they were to have attacked the nascent Islamic State in Medina it would have been destroyed. Are these claims based on solid reasoning?

[HooptieWagon]

1. Pretenders.

For Sunnis, the Caliph is elected, in contrast to Shias who believe the Caliph is chosen by God from the descendents of Ali. I haven't heard that Sunnis have elected anyone. ISIS doesn't control much land, and their hold on that which they do is tenuous. They don't control any Holy cities. Calling themselves a Caliphate is merely a PR ploy.... trying to harken back to an era when an Islamic empire was the big player on the world political stage. So their claim of a Caliphate is just a lot of hot air, with no basis in fact. It would be like a gang of a few thousand Italians stirring up trouble in Italy, and claiming they have re-established the Roman Empire.