|
ISIS's Mini-Jonestown Starts to Crumble
by John M. Curtis
(310) 204-8700
Copyright
December 20, 2014
All Rights Reserved.
As the
U.S. gropes to deal with the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, the world watches
its senior officials massacre fighters seeking a way out of the Islamic death
cult. Using Islam as a smokescreen
much the same way as Rev. Jim Jones lured hundreds of Christian followers of the
Peoples Temple to the jungles of Guiana before the mass suicide-homicide Nov.
18, 1978, senior ISIS militants massacred their own fighters in Raqqa seeking a
way out. While not confirmed by
multiple sources, an anti-ISIS activist “verified 100 executions” of ISIS
fighters daring to bail out. ISIS’s secret police raided homes of ISIS fighters refusing to show up for duty, now that
the U.S. and coalition air strikes have made Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s life more
complicated since seizing Mosul June 10, 2014.
U.S. and coalition forces continue to pound ISIS’s capital of Raqqa with
relentless air strikes.
Among the marginalized misfits seeking to join al-Baghadi’s apocalyptic
cult, some are coming to their senses realizing that they’re unlikely to get out
alive. As the composition of ISIS
becomes more obvious, it’s clear that former Saddam Hussein Baathists control
ISIS’s military wing. Hoping to
conquer Baghdad, the former Republicans guards were the same ones that tore off
their uniforms and jumped into the Tigress River April 10, 2003 when Baghdad
fell to U.S. forces. Al-Baghdadi
serves like Jim Jones as the charismatic head of the group used for recruitment,
vetting devotees for their willingness to die for the cause. Once in the ISIS cult, recruits can only get out feet first, not walk out on their own. Reports of British, French and
German ISIS fighters have been jailed, now facing executions for changing their
minds, wanting to return to native lands.
Recruiting marginally adjusted fighters, ISIS panders to the lowest wrung
of humanity, individuals so poorly adjusted, so bereft of marketable skills,
that their only option was jointing an al-Baghdadi’s death cult. Showing that branding works in the media, the mere fact of identifying ISIS as an Islamic
group lends it legitimacy. When the
Islamic façade is peeled away, ISIS is just another apocalyptic cult, managed by
former Saddam dead-enders. Since
the U.S. launched air strikes in Syria Sept. 29, thousands of ISIS fighters have
been killed, forcing the militant group into retreat. No longer do ISIS militants grab
land at will in Iraq and Syria without resistance. Between the first of the year and
Aug. 8 when the U.S. began air strikes in Iraq, ISIS has watched its fortunes
reversed, despite hanging onto key Iraqi and Syrian cities like Mosul and Raqqa.
When the new GOP Senate convenes in January, Armed Service Committee
Chairman Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and Foreign Relations Committee Chairman
Sen. Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) will call Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Martin
Dempsey on the carpet for current U.S. strategy.
McCain and Corker will question the wisdom of a exclusive air war, urging
Dempsey to consider U.S. ground operations. Since calling ISIS a threat to U.S. national security, Obama has committed himself to
dismantling the terror group. U.S. officials must plot strategy to recapture Mosul for Kurdish fighters now evicting
ISIS and liberating the ancient Yazdi population in Mt. Sinjar. Since Obama decided to arm the Kurds
directly Aug. 8, bypassing Baghdad, they’ve played a frontline role in fighting
ISIS in Iraq’s northern territories.
Kurds need to recapture Mosul to get rid of ISIS.
With 8,000 Peshmerga Kurdish fighters battling ISIS, al-Baghdadi’s group
has stalled out in its advance to conquer more Iraqi and Syrian territory. Seizing some 30% of Iraq and Syria
over the first eight months of 2014, ISS’s bravado has been clipped. U.S. air strikes have put a damper on ISIS plans to continue expanding territory in Iraq
and Syria. Sustaining more losses
has left the media wing of ISIS scrambling to show its relevance. With any measurable ground
operation, it’s growing more likely that the Kurd’s Peshmergas, with U.S.
military help can push ISIS out of Mosul, Iraq’s second largest city. Reports of as many as 100 ISIS
fighters executed because they want out of the apocalyptic cult reveals the true
nature of the group. Duping
marginalized folks into dying for al-Baghdadi’s cause reveals how Saddam’s
former Revolutionary Guards hope to one day retake Baghdad.
Sustaining deep losses, ISIS now has morale problems among fighters no
longer viewing al-Baghadadi as infallible.
Losing over 800 fighters to U.S.
and coalition air attacks, ISIS recruits are having second thoughts, much
the same way Jonestown devotees figured out that the Peoples Temple’s prophesies
had failed. By the time hypnotized
fanatics returned to their senses, Jonestown henchmen opened fire with machine
guns. When ISIS’s devotees begin to
doubt the cult’s mission, they’ll be heading to the exits. Judging by recent executions of ISIS’s foreign fighters, it looks like executive
leadership can’t gloss over cracks in the terror groups façade. As casualties
mount and ISIS is forced to give up more ground, it’s loyal jihadist fighting
force will begin to defect. When
the U.S. decides to deploy ground troops, the terror group will begin to
crumble.
About the Author
|
