ISIS: The State of Terror Part 1

Isis.

The State of Terror.

Stern, Jessica; Berger, J. M.

GLOSSARY.

Abu Sayyaf Group: A jihadist organization in the Philippines founded with funds from al Qaeda. It has pledged loyalty to ISIS.

Ahrar al Sham: The second most significant anti-a.s.sad jihadist group behind Jabhat al Nusra; a member of the Syrian Islamic Front coalition.

al Qaeda, al Qaeda Central (AQ, AQC): A global Salafi Sunni militant jihadi organization founded by Osama bin Laden and others in Afghanistan. It is now run by Ayman al Zawahiri.

al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP): An al Qaeda affiliate based in Yemen and Saudi Arabia.

al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI): A jihadi group in Iraq founded by Abu Musab al Zarqawi, which would later become the Islamic State of Iraq and later still, the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, or ISIS. It refers to itself now simply as the Islamic State.

al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM): An al Qaeda affiliate that operates in the Sahara and Sahel region of North Africa.

al Shabab: An al Qaeda affiliate in Somalia.

Ansar Bayt al Maqdis (ABM): A jihadist group that arose following the Arab Spring in the Sinai region of Egypt. It has declared its territory in the Sinai to be a province of ISIS.

Ansar al-Islam: A Kurdish separatist and jihadi organization active in Iraq in 2003.

Ansar al-Sharia (AST): A jihadist organization in Tunisia.

Awakening, or Awakening Movement: Former Sunni Arab insurgents who joined the fight against jihadi groups in Iraq. Also known as the Sons of Iraq.

Ba'ath Party: A political party founded in Syria that merged socialism with anti-imperialism, Arab nationalism, and pan-Arabism. Saddam Hussein and Bashar al a.s.sad were affiliated with the Ba'athist parties in Iraq and Syria, respectively.

Ba'athists: Members of the Ba'ath party.

bayah: A religiously binding oath of loyalty.

Bilad al Sham: Refers to historical Greater Syria that extended into regions of Palestine, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Iraq; also called the Levant.

Boko Haram: A fundamentalist jihadi group in Nigeria.

caliph: Ruler of the Muslim community; a political successor of Muhammad.

caliphate: A political-religious state led by a caliph.

Daesh or Daash: A derogatory term for ISIS based on its acronym in Arabic.

Dawla: The Arabic word for "state," often used as a name for ISIS by its supporters.

Eid al-Fitr: The last day of Ramadan, the Islamic month of fasting and religious reflection.

emir: Arabic for commander; literally "prince."

fitna: An Arabic word referring to a period of internal dissent and infighting in Islamic history, also used to refer to similar conflicts in a modern context.

Free Syrian Army (FSA): Originally consisting of Syrian military defectors, the FSA is now an umbrella organization for secular, nationalist anti-a.s.sad fighters.

hadith (plural, ahadith): Stories about Muhammad, his sayings, and historical figures within Islam, which are understood to have varying degrees of authenticity. Many Islamic end times traditions and prophecies are derived from ahadith.

Hezb-e-Islami: An Afghan militant group.

hijra: Migration, emigration.

International Security a.s.sistance Force (ISAF): NATO's international security force in Afghanistan. Its role is to support the Afghan National Security Forces as they increase capacity.

Islamic Army of Iraq: A former Iraqi Sunni Arab insurgency group that formed following the 2003 invasion. Following the 2011 withdrawal of American troops it demilitarized and formed a political opposition group.

Islamic Front: A coalition of Islamist rebel groups in Syria, not including the al Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al Nusra.

Islamic State (IS): Name of ISIS after its declaration of a caliphate in June 2014.

Islamic State of Iraq (ISI): The name of the al Qaedaaffiliated insurgent group in Iraq (and its allies) from the death of Zarqawi in 2006 until 2012.

Islamic State of (or "in") Iraq and Syria (ISIS): Also called Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham. The successor group to the Islamic State of Iraq, following its expansion from Iraq into neighboring Syria. The acronym ISIS is still widely used, despite the fact that the group officially changed its name to the Islamic State in June 2014.

Jabhat al Nusra (Nusra): The al Qaeda affiliate in Syria; also known as the Nusra Front.

Jamaat Jaysh Ahl al-Sunnah wa-al-Jamaah: The Army of the Sunni People. A Sunni insurgent group that formed following the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ISIS emir Abu Bakr al Baghdadi was reportedly a cofounder of this group.

Jemaah Islamiyah: A now-defunct Indonesian jihadi organization that had strong ties to al Qaeda.

jihad: Arabic word meaning "struggle." It has been used to describe a broad range of actions from spiritual struggles to armed conflict.

jihadi Salafism: A branch of Salafism that believes that any government that does not rule though Shariah is an illegitimate infidel regime. Jihadi Salafism embraces the use of violence to overthrow these regimes.

Jund al Khalifa: A splinter group of AQIM in Algeria that has become part of ISIS. It is responsible for the beheading of a French tourist in response to ISIS's call for such actions from supporters.

Khorasan Group: A cell of senior al Qaeda Central operatives dispatched to Syria to plan and coordinate attacks on the West.

kuffar: Infidels; unbelievers.

Kurds: An ethnic group centered in the Middle East, whose ancestral homeland crosses several modern-day borders.

Mahdi: An Islamic end-times figure believed to appear around the time of the Day of Judgment. Sometimes referred to as the Rightly Guided One, or the Hidden Imam.

Mujahid (plural, mujahideen): A Muslim fighter waging military jihad.

Muhajir (plural, muhajireen or muhajiroun): Emigrant. Often used to refer to foreign fighters taking part in military jihad. The plural form differs depending on the grammar of a sentence in Arabic.

al Muhajiroun: A radical Islamic organization in Britain led by Anjem Choudary. The organization has been disbanded, but successor social networks remain active.

mujtahidun: Literally "the industrious ones," a term used to refer to very active ISIS supporters on social media.

nasheed (plural, anasheed): An Islamic religious chant.

niqab: A black cloth veil worn by some Muslim women that covers part of the face and the entire body.

nusayri: A derogatory term for people who practice a variant of s.h.i.+a Islam common among members of the Syrian regime.

peshmerga: Highly trained Kurdish fighters in Iraq; the standing army for the semiautonomous Iraqi Kurdistan region.

political Salafism: A branch of Salafism that pursues the purification of Islam through involvement in politics.

quietist Salafism: A branch of Salafism whose central goal is to purify Islam. They do not identify as political actors nor do they partic.i.p.ate in politics.

rafidah: A derogatory term for s.h.i.+a Muslims.

Salafi: A fundamentalist Sunni Islamic movement that believes in strict adherence to Islam as they believe it was practiced by Muhammad.

Shariah: The Islamic moral code and religious law. There are considerable disagreements among Muslims about how Shariah figures into modern life. ISIS and AQ-affiliated groups embrace a harsh interpretation, but even they differ over the details.

s.h.i.+a Islam: A branch of Islam that recognizes Ali, Muhammad's son-in-law, and only his descendants as the rightful leaders of the Muslim community.

shaykh or sheikh: An honorific denoting respect for an individual as a leader or influencer within a tribe, clan, country, or Islamic religious group.

shahid: A martyr.

Sons of Iraq: Former Sunni Arab insurgents who joined the fight against jihadi groups in Iraq. More commonly known as the Awakening Movement.

sunnah: The recorded traditions of Muhammad.

Sunni Islam: The largest branch of Islam. Frequently referred to as "mainstream" or "orthodox" Islam.

Tablighi Jamaat: An Islamic revivalist movement founded in response to a preserved corruption of moral values. The movement aims to bring Muslims across all social and economic spectra into their understanding of religion by encouraging community service, contemplation, and proselytizing.

takfir: The p.r.o.nouncement of a Muslim as an apostate. Usually understood by jihadists as a religious authorization to kill the subject.

Taliban: An Islamic fundamentalist organization founded in Pakistan, which later spread to Afghanistan, where it controlled the government from 1996 to 2001. It continues to be a significant insurgent movement.

Tehrik-e-Taliban (TTP): A Pakistani insurgent group linked to al Qaeda, which has splintered in recent years due to a number of internal divisions, including but by no means limited to support for ISIS among some members.

ummah: The worldwide Muslim community.

wilayat: Province. A governing substructure used by ISIS.

Yazidis: A Kurdish-speaking religious and ethnic minority in Iraq; ISIS believes the Yazidis to be devil wors.h.i.+ppers who may be killed or enslaved with impunity.

TIMELINE.

March 20, 2003 President George W. Bush announces the start of war against Iraq.

April 9, 2003 U.S.-led invasion topples Saddam Hussein's government in Iraq.

May 2003 Zarqawi-led group called the Organization of Monotheism and Jihad begins operations in Iraq.

August 2003 Zarqawi's group bombs United Nations headquarters in Baghdad.

April 2004 Hundreds are reported killed in fighting during the monthlong U.S. military siege of the Sunni Muslim city of Fallujah.

April 2004 Photographic evidence emerges of abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. troops in Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad.

May 2004 Zarqawi begins videotaped beheadings in Baghdad.

June 2004 United States hands sovereignty to Iraq's interim government headed by Prime Minister Iyad Allawi.

October 2004 Zarqawi swears loyalty to Osama bin Laden and founds al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI).

December 2004 Abu Bakr al Baghdadi released from United States' Camp Bucca after six months' imprisonment.

January 2005 AQI starts a campaign of public beheadings on the streets of Iraqi cities.

April 2005 AQI becomes a foreign fighter magnet and targets s.h.i.+'a, much to the concern of bin Laden's al Qaeda.

May 2005 Surge in car bombings, bomb explosions, and shooting in Iraq.

October 2005 Voters approve a new const.i.tution, which aims to create an Islamic federal democracy in Iraq.

December 2005 Iraqis vote for the first, full-term government and parliament.

February 2006 Bombing of the s.h.i.+'a al Askari Mosque in Samarra, Iraq; full sectarian conflict ensues.

April 22, 2006 Newly reelected president Jalal Talabani, a Kurd, asks s.h.i.+'a compromise candidate Nouri al Maliki to form a new government in Iraq, ending months of deadlock.

June 2006 Zarqawi killed in U.S. military air strike.

October 2006 Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) is formed; Abu Omar al Baghdadi named new leader.

December 2006 Saddam Hussein is executed by the Iraqis in Camp Justice, a joint Iraqi-American base in a suburb of Baghdad, for crimes against humanity.

January 2007 U.S. military surge and Sunni Awakening begin to greatly diminish ISI.

January 2008 The Iraqi parliament pa.s.ses legislation allowing former officials from Saddam Hussein's Ba'ath party to return to public life.

March 2008 Prime Minister Maliki orders crackdown on militia in Basra, sparking pitched battles with Moqtada al Sadr's Mehdi Army, a s.h.i.+'a militia group.