Four Wars and Counting: Making Sense of the anti-IS Struggle
Four Wars and Counting: Making Sense of the anti-IS Struggle by Jonathan Marcus, BBC
The rise of so-called Islamic State (IS), which controls a swathe of territory in Syria and Iraq, has prompted the creation of a large, multinational coalition including the US, Turkey, and Washington's Gulf allies, all intent on its destruction.
So too of course is Iran and, not surprisingly, Israel. This has resulted, for example, in pro-Iranian militias in Iraq appearing to be on the same side as the US.
The struggle against IS in Syria has prompted even more contradictions – with Gulf states suspected of supporting Sunni groups linked to al-Qaeda – while al-Qaeda affiliates like Jabhat-al-Nusrah have battled US-trained moderate Syrian militias.
So what exactly is going on? How are we to make sense of some of these curious alliances and contradictions? …
