John McCain: "Obama is directly responsible"

[En_Sabah_Nur 9,366]

Bush started this ENTIRE MESS by entering Iraq to even begin with, so he is the BIGGEST ONE at fault above ALL...!  

 

[Goosey 3,017]

1 hour ago, PartySick said:

Let's not forget this is the man who's taken 7.4 million dollars from the NRA over his political career. 

Are you implying corruption or undue influence? Sorry, nope, McCain personally took no money from the NRA, he was endorsed by them and they donated to his campaign. McCain is pro-gun because (most likely) that's his personal view on the matter, and also because that's what his voter base wants him to say (and coming full circle, his views are why the NRA endorsed him and donated millions, not the other way around).

[lego 44,165]

1 hour ago, PartySick said:

Wasn't ISIS formed from radicals after the Afghanistan government was toppled (during Bush's presidency)? I knew at one point but it's slipped my mind tbh.

 

I'll try to find one great documentary on this, it's all well explained with dates, footage and everything, I'll let you know.

I'll quote parts of these articles, hope it's more clear

 

"The dominance of Iraq’s Sunni elites goes back to the Ottoman Empire, in which what is now Iraq was a borderland abutting the rival Shiite empire in Iran. The privileged role of Sunni Arabs was strengthened by the British colonial powers and, with the Sunni preponderance in the officer class, continued through the history of independent Iraq.

By empowering the Shiite majority for the first time, the 2003 U.S. invasion upended what many Sunnis have come to see as Iraq’s natural order—and sparked violent resistance to the new Baghdad authorities that continues until now.

“When the Americans came, they put the Shiites in power and the Sunnis in prison,” said Mehdi al-Sumeidaie, the imam of Baghdad’s Sunni Umm al-Tuboul mosque who was jailed together with Islamic State’s current leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, in the U.S.-run Camp Bucca detention facility in south Iraq.

The pursuit of a Shiite sectarian agenda by Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki following the U.S. withdrawal in 2011 was a key reason why Islamic State, also known under its Arabic acronym Daesh, managed to sweep through Sunni areas of the country last summer, encountering little resistance.

“When Daesh came, the Sunni Arabs did not join in the battle because Daesh was threatening a government that was not theirs,” said Dhiaa Najm al-Asadi, a prominent Shiite lawmaker. Today, he added, the Sunnis should “be represented in government as they deserve, and more than they deserve.”

http://www.wsj.com/articles/iraqs-sunnis-dont-accept-minority-role-1428571127

 

"Even with the influx of thousands of foreign fighters, almost all of the leaders of the Islamic State are former Iraqi officers, including the members of its shadowy military and security committees, and the majority of its emirs and princes, according to Iraqis, Syrians and analysts who study the group.

They have brought to the organization the military expertise and some of the agendas of the former Baathists, as well as the smuggling networks developed to avoid sanctions in the 1990s and which now facilitate the Islamic State’s illicit oil trading.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/the-hidden-hand-behind-the-islamic-state-militants-saddam-husseins/2015/04/04/aa97676c-cc32-11e4-8730-4f473416e759_story.html

 

also interesting Baathists are like communists, I don't think they were believers in any religion, but they basically created IS to fight shii'a militia in Iraq and Assad in Syria, who is supported by Iran and Russia.

Also many Syrian rebels switched sides and joined IS, so it's a melting pot. 

 

 

 

[lego 44,165]

here's another

 

 

Sunnis removed from power

This Sunni-controlled Ba’ath system was overthrown during America’s invasion of Iraq. Backed by international political support after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the United States invaded Iraq to depose Saddam Hussein. With their overwhelming military capabilities, America quickly decimated the Iraqi military and set up a new, provisional government. As punishment for their authoritarian reign, the Ba’ath party was outlawed and all members of the party were fired from government held positions. The decision put over 40,000 Sunni Arabs, from middle school teachers to secretaries, out of a job overnight.

However, under an authoritarian regime such as the Ba’ath Party’s Iraq, being a member of the party was more of a necessity than a choice. Most members of the Ba’ath party weren’t complicit in the regime’s internal policies or the authoritarian security forces, yet in Iraq they were held responsible. A lot of the people who were fired were average Sunnis, completely innocent of any wrongdoing. Many of Iraq’s most prominent Sunni lawmakers, professors, and leaders were exiled, replaced by Shiites and Kurds. By removing all Ba’ath party members, the newly formed, American-backed government was completely void of Sunni representation.

Nouri al-Malaki and the birth of ISIS

When the Americans pulled out of Iraq in 2011, they left Shiite Nouri al-Maliki in charge of the Iraqi government. Prime Minister Maliki, a Shiite Arab surrounded by a Shia dominated government, would be responsible for fairly treating the Sunni minority. But after suffering decades of horrendous abuse at the hands of the Sunni Ba’ath party, Malaki and his inner circle were eager to extract revenge. Malaki illegally removed the remaining Sunni politicians from power and deployed the Iraqi military to the Sunni heartland in the north-west of the country. Here, the Shia dominated military harassed Sunni civilians, setting up hundreds of road blocks across cities nationwide under the guise of ‘regional security’.

The Sunnis, now politically marginalized and subject to daily persecution, organized themselves into insurgency groups to fight Malaki’s government. Muslim cleric Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi founded the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and pledged to establish an independent state for the Sunnis. However, Baghdadi received little support for Sunni Muslims in the region who found his hardline interpretation of Islam too radical.

The small group was raided by Malaki’s security forces again and again, and most members of Baghdadi’s inner circle were captured or killed. By 2010, the fledging ISIS organization was on the brink of collapse.

ISIS gains a foothold in the Syrian Civil War

Baghdadi, desperate to keep his small insurgency alive, found new roots in the war-torn Syrian countryside. The Syrian government, headed by Shiite president Bashar al-Assad was engaged in a bloody civil war against a moderate, Sunni opposition. ISIS, interested in recruiting new members and establishing themselves as the ‘defenders’ of Sunni Muslims, crossed the border into Syria and began to fight against the Assad government.

ISIS became known as one of the most radical and effective groups in the Syrian Civil War, gaining notoriety through their harsh tactics. In the violent chaos of the civil war, ISIS slowly gained more followers and territory, using the proceeds from captured oil fields to fund their operations. Within just 18 months, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria controlled nearly a third of Syrian territory, supported by thousands of battle tested, well-armed jihadists.

Invasion of Iraq

With his well-trained, well-equipped army, Baghdadi turned his sights back to Iraq. Using his experienced soldiers, Baghdadi conducted a lightning offensive across north-eastern Iraq. Malaki’s Iraqi army melted away in the face of the determined, relentless assault. Often, ISIS suicide bombers would destroy the walls of military bases, allowing other members to rush inside and overwhelm the Iraqi security forces. In order to inspire fear, surrendering Iraqi divisions were summarily executed by ISIS’s fighters. The Iraqi army, fearful of being captured and executed by the militants, deserted by the thousands and fled their bases, leaving their America-made weapons behind.

In under a month, ISIS scored a huge strategic victory by capturing Mosul, the second largest city in Iraq. Mosul is a religiously Sunni major oil production hub in northern Iraq, home to nearly 2 million people. In Mosul, Baghdadi secured thousands of American-made tanks, weapons, and materials that had been given to the Iraqi army. Armed with high grade weaponry, ISIS continued to rampage across the Iraqi countryside, grinding to a halt only 15 miles from Baghdad, the capital of the country.

Goals of ISIS

In just a few years, ISIS had transformed from a small, underground terrorist organization into a major regional power, controlling more territory than either the Iraqi or Syrian government. ISIS’s self-stated goal is declare an Islamic caliphate across the Sunni inhabited countryside of Iraq and Syria, a dream that they are close to realizing. In order to achieve this ambitious goal, the group uses aggressive, harsh tactics to defeat its opponents and solidify control over its conquered territories.

 

 

....

 

it's the best to read the full thing here

http://theglobalstate.com/popular/understanding-isis/

 

[lego 44,165]

sorry, this is the last one

 

"... Playing on sectarian divides between Sunnis and Shiites ISIS has painted themselves as the protectors of the Sunnis.

...

ISIS uses the same terrorist-style tactics with the west. While ISIS’s brutal, horrific videos of Americans being executed may seem senseless and purposeless, they are actually very calculated. By executing high profile prisoners and conducting frightening terrorist attacks, ISIS is trying to bait the west into a response. If America or other countries sent troops to Iraqi soil, the populace will resist the invaders and support ISIS."

 

 

[Redstreak 6,653]

Thank god Trump is destroying them

[En_Sabah_Nur 9,366]

8 minutes ago, YourSweet666 said:

sorry, this is the last one

 

"... Playing on sectarian divides between Sunnis and Shiites ISIS has painted themselves as the protectors of the Sunnis.

...

ISIS uses the same terrorist-style tactics with the west. While ISIS’s brutal, horrific videos of Americans being executed may seem senseless and purposeless, they are actually very calculated. By executing high profile prisoners and conducting frightening terrorist attacks, ISIS is trying to bait the west into a response. If America or other countries sent troops to Iraqi soil, the populace will resist the invaders and support ISIS."

 

 

You've posted all of Iraq's history in just the past 3 posts!!  

 

[lego 44,165]

14 minutes ago, En_Sabah_Nur said:

You've posted all of Iraq's history in just the past 3 posts!!  

 

 

it's @PartySick's fault, he asked me.

You can't explain their creation in 3 words.

 

all of it's history tho?  it wouldn't fit here even if I tried. 

 

[PartySick 172,545]

14 minutes ago, YourSweet666 said:

 

it's @PartySick's fault, he asked me.

You can't explain their creation in 3 words.

 

all of it's history tho?  it wouldn't fit here even if I tried. 

 

Thanks for the help

I bookmarked this page so I can go back and read through your links when I'm not so sleepy and fuzzyheaded

[Brian Ryan 1,468]

Assault rifle ban ... I swear Republicans just make me laugh.