ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror (Updated Edition)Fully Revised & Updated Edition of the New York Times Bestselling and Highly Praised Book on ISIS With newly added material and breaking news including: —Interview with a former ISIS spymaster —Why ISIS is targeting Europe and the US —What Russia wants in Syria —Revelations on the brutal ideology of ISIS With brutal attacks in last year across the globe—Brussels, Paris, Beirut, Egypt, Turkey—the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has proved itself the greatest terrorist threat in the world today. They have conquered massive territories in Syria and Iraq in a bid to create a new Muslim caliphate under the strict dictates of Sharia law. In this fully revised and updated edition of ISIS: Inside the Army of Terror, American journalist Michael Weiss and Syrian analyst Hassan Hassan explain how these violent extremists evolved from a nearly defeated Iraqi insurgent group into a jihadi army of international volunteers who, with slickly produced murder videos, are spreading violence and mayhem across the globe. Beginning with the early days of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the founder of ISIS’s first incarnation, Weiss and Hassan explain who the key players are—from their leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi to the former Saddam Baathists in their ranks—where they come from, how they have attracted both local and global support, and how they operate—from their social media strategy to their illicit oil revenues. As money and matériel continue to flow into the region to combat the ISIS’s spreading terror, other forces—Assad’s regime, Russian planes, Iranian Quds Forces, and other Shiite militias—are gaining power and using the fight against ISIS as a means to leverage their agenda in the region. Political and military maneuvering by the United States, Iraq, Iran, Syria, and Russia have fueled ISIS’s explosive expansion. In five new chapters, the authors delve further into the inner workings of the Army of Terror and what it is like to live under their ever-tightening rule. With invaluable and exclusive insider information, the authors explore the Islamic State’s enigmatic recruitment and training methods, the impact of their military successes and failures, and how they structure and empower home-grown cells worldwide to carry out their terror. Drawing on original interviews with former US military officials and current ISIS fighters—and brand-new interviews with a former ISIS spy, as well as Kurdish and Yazidi survivors of the ISIS’s assault on northern Iraq—the authors reveal the internecine struggles within the movement itself, as well as ISIS’s bloody hatred of Shiite Muslims, which is generating another sectarian war in the region. A new generation of terror has dawned in the world and to understand how to stop it, we must understand who they are. |
Contents
SHEIKH OF THE SLAUGHTERERS | 23 |
THE MANAGEMENT OF SAVAGERY | 41 |
THE AWAKENING | 71 |
ASSADS PROXY | 97 |
REBIRTH | 110 |
REVOLUTION BETRAYED | 126 |
DIVORCE | 143 |
CONVERTS AND FIVESTAR JIHADISTS | 160 |
FROM TWITTER TO DABIQ RECRUITING THE NEW MUJAHIDIN | 173 |
SHAKEDOWN OF THE SHEIKHS ISIS COOPTS THE TRIBES | 186 |
LOYALTY AND DISLOYALTY | 216 |
AT WAR IN SYRIA | 259 |
WE WILL CONQUER YOUR ROME | 293 |
CONFESSIONS OF AN ISIS SPY A MEETING IN ISTANBUL | 325 |
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Common terms and phrases
Abaaoud Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi Abu Khaled According air strikes al-Assad al-Bab al-Maliki al-Nusra al-Qaeda in Iraq al-Zarqawi al-Zawahiri Alawite Aleppo American Anbar Arab areas Assad attacks Baathist Baghdad bombing brigade Brisard caliphate camp campaign civilians cleric coalition commander Dabiq Damascus December Deir Ezzor emir Endgame enemy Fallujah fight foreign fighters former Free Syrian Army Gordon & Trainor groups Hezbollah Human Rights Ibid insurgency intelligence Interview Iran Iran’s Iranian Iraq’s Iraqi Security Forces ISIS ISIS members ISIS’s Islamic Islamist January jihad jihadists joined ISIS Jordanian killed Kobane Kurdish Kurds Laden leader Middle East military months mosque Mosul mujahidin Mukhabarat Muslims Obama October official operatives organization percent police prison province Qaeda Quds Force Ramadi Raqqa rebels recruits regime regime’s region Russian Saddam Salafist Saudi sectarian Sharia Shia Shia militias soldiers suicide Sunni Syria takfiris targets terrorism terrorist told town tribal tribes Turkey weapons Yazidis Zarqawi