It's been thirteen years since the horrific 9/11 attacks on America by Al Qaeda. Since then, Americans and its allies have vowed to fight and end terrorism and their supporters in the Middle East while terrorist groups continue to grow. Today, Americans and its allies face a new radical foe who call themselves ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria). If the United States would focus on the root of the problem, could we finally take steps forward in the war of terrorism and the rise of new radical groups such as ISIS, in engaging Iran in making policies for the region and managing terrorist activities?.
In Iraq, for instance, what helped ISIS to grow? After the defeat of Saddam Hussein regiment, Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki of Iraq excluded Iraqi Sunnis from having any power in the government and favored the majority in population: the Shia. In doing so, he incorporated several policies. Among them was the use of Iraq's counterterrorism laws which would allow him to imprison Sunnis in Iraq. He would also prohibit Saddam former employees under the Hussein administration to hold office in the new government if they were Sunni. Maliki, against advice from the United States, formed death squads to hunt down Saddam's Hussein ex officer corps and in turn ex high ranking officers of Saddam regime went into hiding and vowed revenge on the new regime that had replaced them. With the help of Tehran's Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Iranian backed militias, Maliki continued to prosecute the Iraqi Sunni community forcing them to find a way to defend themselves and seeing ISIS as a way of defense against persecution. .
In Syria, ISIS leadership saw an opportunity with the withdrawal of American soldiers in Iraq in December of 2011 and an uprising which began in Syria in March 2011. President Bashar al-Assad reforms created and uneven economy which angered its citizens as living conditions worsened, living cost continued to rise and jobs remained scarce.