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Islamic State:
Genesis and Growth of ISIS and its implications for India

NEWSLETTER WRITTEN BY

Dhaval Modi

Islamic State is like a moving target, constantly there is something or the

other happening, whether it has got to do with ISISs activities in some country or
with the area where they are operating i.e. Syria and Iraq.
Ambassador Rajendra Abhyankar
Observer Research Foundation with University of Mumbais Department of Politics and Civics
jointly hosted a talk by Ambassador Rajendra Abhyankar (IFS Retd) on 23rd January on Islamic State:
Genesis and Growth of ISIS and Its Implications for India. On this occasion ORF and Kunzru Centre for
Defence Studies and Research also released a monograph by the same name.
Since the declaration of an Islamic Caliphate by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in June 2014, the
terrorist outfit has grown rapidly at an unprecedented rate. Ambassador Abhyankar explained that like all
religions across the world, Islam too has its violent and skewed interpretation by a small fraction of
practitioners which has resulted in the creation and burgeoning of ISIS. Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi a.k.a Awwad
Ibrahim al-Badri who was previously a soldier in Saddam Husseins army, heads the ISIS and has been
listed as a global terrorist with a reward of US$ 10 million for his capture. He chooses to call himself Abu
Bakr like the first caliph after the Prophet. However through his choice of nomenclature such as Islamic
State and Caliphate, Abu Bakr tries to assert suzerainty over the Muslim population worldwide and
hence has been rejected by mainstream community leaders.
Over the last six months, Abu Bakr has created the ISIS
by capturing three provinces in Iraq including Diyala,
Mosul and Ninevah, and Raqqa and Deir el Zour in Syria.
In the process, ISIS has nullified the controversial SykesPicot Agreement that established the border between
the Syria and Iraq by the British and French colonists in
1916.
Ambassador Abhyankar stressed that Iraq and Syria are
extremely important because of their strategic
relevance in the region and in world affairs. The two
countries are placed at the confluence of three major
world civilizations, namely Arabic, Turkish and Persian.
The diversity of thought and religions from east and
west converged in this region making religious ferment
common. However there was always an element of
tolerance amongst the populace indicated by the coexistence of ancient churches and Shia and Sunni
Figure 1: Monograph authored by Ambasaddor
shrines scattered across the region. Events in Syria are
Abhyankar on Islamic State
known to quickly cascade across the West Asia because
of the strategic placement of Syria. Syria has been home to a large Arab population and it shares the
border with Israel making it strategically essential. Thus it has been often referred as the bleeding heart
of West Asia. Iraq has some of the most holy shrines for followers of Islam worldwide in the cities of

Najaf and Karbala. Also the large deposits of crude oil in Iraq make it a critical international player in the
modern fossil fuel age.
The Islamic States creation is the manifestation of struggle within Islam, which is as old as Islam itself.
However it was the power vacuum created by the 2003 invasion of Iraq by United State of America that
stimulated the creation of Islamic State of Iraq (ISI). In affiliation with Al Qaeda, ISI was initially established
as a movement to resist the American troops and Nouri al-Malki governments exclusion of Sunnis. The
distorted over-simplification of Iraq by US analysts in terms of Shia and Sunni population wrecked the
existing structure in the country. With support from Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, ISIS was able to
consolidate the Sunni population in Iraq and also Syria.
The factors for deterioration of situation in the region can be attributed to three parallel divides that exist
in West Asia.

The Sunni-Shia divide in the region is exacerbated by support from different foreign powers.
The second is the divide between supporters and opponents of political Islam. The resurfacing of
the Muslim Brotherhood during the Arab uprisings of 2011, after decades of dormancy led to
Islam entering into governance. Until then, Iraq and Syria were both dominated by the Arab Baath
Socialist ideology that was secular. The Baath movement advocated womens rights, socialism
and divorce between the state and religion. Post US invasion the thoughtless outlawing of Baath
Party supporters to weed out Saddam Hussein supporters had significant repercussions. The Iraqi
government under the Baath party was the largest employer in the Iraq. When the party
supported employees were fired, it created an economic imbalance and many of the unemployed
people, usually Sunnis, became recruits for ISIS.
Thirdly the divide between the public and their inefficient governments was expressed by the
Arab Spring revolutions occurring across the region.

ISISs growth has been different from other terrorist organizations. It has staked claim to large swathes of
territory in Iraq and Syria. It has control over the administration and collects taxes from people. The
observance of Sharia law in adherence to Islamic principles is strictly enforced; the school curriculum has
been overhauled to suit ISIS agenda. Also ISIS has become highly organized with its income from the illicit
sale of crude oil, funds from its sponsors and rent from government buildings. The ransom for abducted
foreign nationals and sale of antiques has also supplemented the income for ISIS. Their holdings are
reported to be valued at over 2 billion US$. They have gained popularity in Islamic states as well as NonIslamic states through effective social media campaigns. Their brutality towards the Yazidi refugees and
Iraqi soldiers captured and disseminated through audio-visual media has been a unique feature of ISIS.
The rise of Islamic State in Levant (another name for ISIS) threatens all pluralist and multicultural societies.
India being a composite society with diversity will be equally vulnerable to the threat that ISIS poses. ISIS
directly as well as indirectly threatens India. The sense of alienation among Indian Muslim youth, feeling
isolated from economic progress can be exploited towards recruiting more Indian nationals for ISIS. The
unwelcome communal polarization by the political parties also fragments the society making it vulnerable
to threat from ISIS. The reports of ISIS flag in Kashmir and other such occurrences indicate the vulnerability
of India to ISISs social media strategy. Furthermore there is the problem of rehabilitating Indian nationals
returning from Iraq and Syria after fighting for ISIS, a phenomenon which is being faced by UK, US and
France. Ambassador Abhyankar also expressed his concern for the safety of the Indian diaspora working
in the West Asia in view of growing disturbance in Iraq and Syria. India also needs to maintain the security
of the foreign investments made by the Government of India, he said.

Indias strategy to deal with ISIS needs to be multipronged. It

needs to identify channels and methods of indoctrination of
new recruits. With a population of 3-4 million Indians in West
Asia, India needs to have political cooperation with Gulf States
to assure safety of Indian diaspora. Intelligence cooperation
with US, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Turkey and other gulf states is also
necessary. India as a growing economy is highly dependent on
crude oil from West Asia and needs to maintain its energy
security against possible disruptions in crude oil supply.
Ambassador Abhyankar also explained that if the rise of ISIS
was a result of conflict within Islam then an effective strategy
would be to marginalize them violence. Collaborating with the
majority against the violence would be an effective strategy to
slow and diminish spread of ISIS. Also a cohesive political,
military and economic strategy needs to be established by the
Figure 2: Ambassador Rajendra Abhyankar
international community. The split amongst the countries
regarding who is the real enemy is resulting in delay in reciprocation. The primary role needs to be taken
by the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) nations like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Morocco, Iran and
Turkey need to spread the message of Islam as a religion of peace than violence. Better cooperation at
UNSC will be critical for establishing a strategy to curtail ISIS. Ambassador Abhyankar reiterated that the
growing frustrations amongst the Muslim youth needs to be addressed and will be critical in strategizing
against the growth of ISIS.
Amb Abhyankar also warned that while a military intervention may defeat ISIS it will not be able to destroy
the idea of ISIS. He also spoke about the lack of consensus among the American Republicans that control
the legislature and deadlock the president. It is not economics that is making US hesitate but the lack of
consensus over who the enemy is in West Asia. Also the western powers are beginning to appreciate the
ability of the Kurdish forces to halt ISIS in its tracks and are providing them training to fight ISIS. Also OIC
member states need to take a more active role in the regional politics since it is their fight.
Mohammed Wajihuddin, senior journalist, The Times of India who chaired the session stated that the
Muslim communitys economic deprivation was the reason for resentment among the youth and their
possible attraction towards militant organizations, notwithstanding the fact that ISIS attracted recruits
from privileged as well as marginalized sections across the world. Citizens from western countries like
France and UK are also enrolling in ISIS given the feeling of alienation. He stated that many clerics and
scholars have condemned such violence and are counselling youth against getting radicalized.
Ambassador, during a Q& A session explained that India needs to evaluate the complex factors associated
with ISIS. India needs to arrive at the stand it wishes to take. India needs to think through the problem
thoroughly. He compared, Indias ability to have a different positions on climate change at a domestic and
international level, to illustrate the need to have clarity about the problem primarily before taking any
actions.

In his concluding remarks Sudheendra

Kulkarni, Chairman ORF Mumbai said that
the nature of political role played by the
religious leaders in Islamic history has led
to divisions among the Muslim populace.
He also commented about the
interference of Western powers in affairs
of West Asia with disastrous outcomes
and this needed to be condemned. The
need to understand nuances of the
Islamic world is fundamental before any
form of foreign mediation. It is preferable
to have Islamic countries in the region
Figure 3: Key speakers (from Left) Sudheendra Kulkarni (Chairman of addressing the problem of ISIS than
Observer Research Foundation), Dr Surendra Jondhale (Head of Civics & Western powers, since they will have a
Politics Department, University of Mumbai), Ambassador Rajendra
Abhyankar and Mohammed Wajihuddin (Senior Journalist from Times of more insightful understanding of the
situation. He spoke about the importance
India)
of the pluralistic societies in the Levant region of West Asia. He cited the example of Egyptian President
Al-Sisi, a Muslim, taking part in the Christmas festivities at the Coptic Church, to illustrate the need for a
national leader to rise above a narrow religious identity. He also explained that in a developing country
like India, many communities suffer intense poverty and deprivation; it is alienation more than deprivation
that may lead to radicalization of Muslim youth. However, the idea of a global Islamic State has held an
exceptional attraction among the Muslim youth; and the appeal of a homogeneous Muslim community
to rule globally stands at the core of this perverse attraction worldwide. Hence it is an ideological battle
that the Indian Muslim community needs to wage against these regressive destructive ideologies. At the
same time, Indias strength lies in its pluralism and cultural diversity, therefore, any talk of turning India
into a homogenous Hindu Rashtra needs to be trashed. Also at an international level, India needs to
actively leverage its reputation of being a genuine peace-maker and an inclusive society, and also bring in
the SAARC for international action to restrict growth of ISIS. In the end he requested action against ISIS
on humanitarian grounds in Iraq and Syria.

For copies of the monograph, please write to Dhaval Desai: dhaval.desai@orfonline.org

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