ISIS emerged as a formidable threat from "summary" of A Rage for Order by Robert F. Worth
ISIS did not come out of nowhere. It was rooted in the same poisonous soil that had nourished Al Qaeda a decade earlier, and in the fertile ground of Iraq's post-invasion chaos. The group's founder, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, had been active in the region for years, first as a radicalized street tough in Jordan and later as a veteran of the Afghan jihad against the Soviets. His brutality and skill at exploiting sectarian tensions made him a natural leader for the group that eventually became ISIS. When the American occupation of Iraq collapsed into violence and chaos in the mid-2000s, Zarqawi seized his opportunity. His group, which eventually became ISIS, began to assert control over large swaths of the country, using brutal tactics to eliminate rivals and terrorize civilians. The group's ability to adapt and survive in the face of overwhelming odds was a testament to Zarqawi's leadership and to the deep sectarian divisions that plagued Iraq. As the chaos in Iraq spread, ISIS began to attract foreign fighters from around the world. These recruits were drawn to the group's message of a puritanical Islamic state and its promise of glory and martyrdom. The group's ability to inspire and mobilize these fighters was a key factor in its rapid expansion and its ability to withstand sustained military pressure. ISIS's rise was also facilitated by the weakness and corruption of the Iraqi government, which had failed to address the grievances of the country's Sunni minority or to provide basic services and security. This failure created a vacuum that ISIS was able to exploit, presenting itself as a more effective and legitimate alternative to the government in Baghdad. By the time ISIS declared its caliphate in 2014, it had already established itself as a formidable threat not only to Iraq and Syria, but to the entire region and beyond. Its ability to attract fighters, its brutal tactics, and its savvy use of social media had made it a potent force that would take years of bloody conflict to defeat.
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