September 18, 2014 | Quote

Like A Sibling Spat for Attention, Islamic State-al Qaeda ‘Competition’ Could Prompt U.S. Strikes

Bill Roggio, managing editor of the Long War Journal, a project of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, said the Islamic State and al Qaeda share the same ideological goals — global jihad and establishing a caliphate. He said that’s not surprising, given that the Islamic State was spawned out of al Qaeda in Iraq.

Mr. Roggio said there are some differences between the organizations. Al Qaeda is more open to having differentiated branches, while the Islamic State wants its troops fighting under its own banner. The Islamic State is also better organized and has better fighters.

But both organizations engage in selling oil, kidnapping for ransom, and collecting taxes or fees for services from those who live in the territory they control.

And while much attention has been given to the Islamic State’s occupation of large chunks of territory in Iraq and Syria, al Qaeda has held territory in Yemen and Somalia.

The Islamic State is better at using social media, which could be winning the battle for new recruits. But Mr. Roggio also said the Islamic State could be growing quickly because Iraq and Syria are easier to get to than Afghanistan and Pakistan, where al Qaeda thrived.

“They seem to be getting an inordinate number of foreign recruits — guys with Western passports,” Mr. Roggio said.

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Issues:

Al Qaeda Syria