Global Affairs

Photo source            The Islamic State, commonly known as ISIS or ISIL has unofficially been ousted from many strongholds in Iraq and Syria. The terrorist organization, a once off branch of Al Qaeda, was able to swiftly rise to power in 2014. Three years prior to this, the United States officially backed out of the War effort in Iraq. That same year, President Assad of Syria propelled a gruesome civil war in his country that is just as ubiquitous now as it was in 2011. Terrorist organizations rise to power and thrive in unstable regions of the world. In doing so, groups like ISIS are able to take advantage and easily overwhelm underfunded and exhausted federal forces. In 2013, ISIS was able to capitalize on the instability in Syria and capture the city of Raqqa from rebel forces. Raqqa, the Islamic States’ Syrian capital was liberated from ISIS control in October of 2017 by counterterrorism forces. In 2014, the Islamic State began its campaign to e...

Later this week or early next week, President Trump is set to announce if North Korea will be listed as a state sponsor of terrorism. On the job currently is Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to investigate the claim. North Korea was put on the state sponsorship of terrorism list in 1988 after it bombed a South Korean airliner. North Korea was removed from this list in 2008 when President Bush hoped to strike a deal with the country in freezing it's nuclear program. Today the question remains, does North Korea sponsor terrorism? To answer this question, let's turn to the region of Lebanon and Palestine. In the area, there are two groups referred to as Hamas and Hezbollah. In short, Hamas is a pro-Palestine group whose aim is to take back the lands of Israel. In order to achieve success, Hamas has turned to killings and suicide bombings. Tactics that have condemned them by Israel, the EU, and the United States as a terrorist organization. Hamas' second goal is to establish ...