Beheading of Second Journalist Strengthens U.S. Resolve
http://www.clarionproject.org/analysis/beheading-second-journalist-strengthens-us-resolve
Wed, September 3, 2014
Screenshot from a video released by the Islamic State of the beheading of America journalist Steven Sotloff.
The Islamic State terrorist group has
released a video (see edited version below) showing its beheading of a
second American journalist, Steven Sotloff and is threatening to kill
British aid worker
David Cawthorne Haines David Cawthorne Haines.
The atrocity should be framed for what it is: A barbaric act designed to intimidate America into halting their air attacks against the group. However, this loathsome display is having the opposite effect as the U.S. is acting building a coalition to join it in military action against the Islamic State.
Sotloff was kidnapped in Syria last year. After the Islamic State (formerly known as ISIS, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) beheaded American journalist James Foley, the group threatened that Sotloff would be next if U.S. airstrikes on the group did not immediately end.
The graphic video of the beheading was accidentally leaked by the Islamic State, undermining its coordinated campaign to release it on social media. It shows more of the beheading than the previous video, but pans away at the last moment. It is possible that the Islamic State is concerned that footage of Sotloff’s pain would backfire.
Al-Qaeda ended up discouraging beheadings because they are unproductive. The Islamic State recently told supporters to stop posting images of their own beheadings and to only use pictures from official releases.
The Islamic State is concerned about its image enough that its members are posting pictures with kittens and dogs and distributing photos that supposedly show mostly normal livelihood under the Islamic State. They also showed captured Kurdish fighters and argued that they are being treated humanely.
The media is obligated to report on the Islamic State video (and its brutal nature) while carefully avoiding advancement of its propaganda.
It is a delicate balancing act. One way to accomplish this is by putting the video in the context of what’s happening on the ground. It is important that the Islamic State does not succeed in using the beheading to create a narrative of momentum and victory.
The Islamic State is a powerful threat, but it is still resorting to murdering unarmed American journalists to display strength. The beading comes as Iraqi forces backed by U.S. airstrikes stopped the group from conquering the town of Amerli after blockading it for almost three months. An estimated 15,000 Shiite Turkmen living there would have been massacred.
The number of U.S. airstrikes on the Islamic State is now at 124. On the same day as the video’s release, the U.S. destroyed 16 vehicles held by the Islamic State near the dam of Mosul. President Obama also decided to send 350 more U.S. soldiers to Iraq to protect American personnel and facilities, raising the number of U.S. soldiers there to 820.
The previous video released by the Islamic State showed the beheading of a Kurdish fighter and the captivity of 14 others. The group also announced that an Al-Qaeda affiliate in Kurdistan, Ansar al-Islam, pledged allegiance to it (a story that Clarion Project originally broke).
The purpose of these releases was to intimidate the Kurds by distracting them from Islamic State retreats. Most importantly, the U.S.-backed Kurds forced the Islamic State to give up the Mosul dam, a piece of infrastructure that the Islamic State could have used to threaten a half-million people.
The Islamic State is burning oil wells as the Kurds push them back. The Kurds have formed all-female units who see their fight against the Islamic State as a struggle for women's rights.
The beheadings of Sotloff and Foley are the top news items for Americans and most of the world today, but the Islamic State should not mistake outrage for weakness: The group has failed to pressure Americans into retreat and appeasement. It has only strengthened the resolve of the U.S. and its international partners.
Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) will soon introduce legislation authorizing U.S. military action against the Islamic State in Syria. And he won’t be met with significant protests.
A poll released a few days ago found that 64% of Americans support U.S. airstrikes on the Islamic State in Iraq, including 73% of Republicans, 64% of Democrats and 57% of independents. Only 20% oppose.
An almost identical majority, 63%, support expanding U.S. airstrikes on the Islamic State to Syria. This includes 76% of Republicans, 60% of Democrats and 60% of Independents. Only 16% oppose.
Keep in mind, these numbers are before the release of the second beheading video. The numbers will also climb as President Obama makes the case for action and after Congress authorizes airstrikes in Syria.
The Islamic State has triggered a more broad desire for the U.S. government to be stronger on these issues. A Pew poll released on August 28 found that 54% feel that President Obama has not been tough enough on foreign policy and national security, including 34% of Democrats. A miniscule 3% of Americans say he’s been too tough.
A new Rasmussen poll found that 73% of Americans are concerned that the U.S. does not have a strategy against the Islamic State, after President Obama said, “We don’t have a strategy yet” on August 28. Only 25% said they are not concerned by this, including 4% who are not concerned at all. Only 29% approve of his handling of the Islamic State, while 42% disapprove.
Remarkably, 30% say the U.S. should send combat troops to Iraq to fight the group, even though President Obama has ruled out that option and virtually no one is making the case for that decision. In December, only 12% supported that hypothetical deployment. Opposition has fallen from 71% to 41% with 29% undecided.
Americans also understand that this threat will not be over soon. The Pew survey found that 63% of Americans believe that militant Islam will grow in the Middle East. Only 25% believe it will decline.
This latest beheading is only strengthening U.S. resolve to take decisive action against the Islamic State. The fact that such a brutal group has been allowed to gain so much power and able to do so much damage is the logical end result of an extremist Islamic ideology being propagated through the world. Groups like Al Qaeda, Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood all subscribe to the same ideology and are not far behind.
Ryan Mauro is ClarionProject.org’s national security analyst, a fellow with Clarion Project and an adjunct professor of homeland security. Mauro is frequently interviewed on Fox News.
David Cawthorne Haines David Cawthorne Haines.The atrocity should be framed for what it is: A barbaric act designed to intimidate America into halting their air attacks against the group. However, this loathsome display is having the opposite effect as the U.S. is acting building a coalition to join it in military action against the Islamic State.
Sotloff was kidnapped in Syria last year. After the Islamic State (formerly known as ISIS, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) beheaded American journalist James Foley, the group threatened that Sotloff would be next if U.S. airstrikes on the group did not immediately end.
The graphic video of the beheading was accidentally leaked by the Islamic State, undermining its coordinated campaign to release it on social media. It shows more of the beheading than the previous video, but pans away at the last moment. It is possible that the Islamic State is concerned that footage of Sotloff’s pain would backfire.
Al-Qaeda ended up discouraging beheadings because they are unproductive. The Islamic State recently told supporters to stop posting images of their own beheadings and to only use pictures from official releases.
The Islamic State is concerned about its image enough that its members are posting pictures with kittens and dogs and distributing photos that supposedly show mostly normal livelihood under the Islamic State. They also showed captured Kurdish fighters and argued that they are being treated humanely.
The media is obligated to report on the Islamic State video (and its brutal nature) while carefully avoiding advancement of its propaganda.
It is a delicate balancing act. One way to accomplish this is by putting the video in the context of what’s happening on the ground. It is important that the Islamic State does not succeed in using the beheading to create a narrative of momentum and victory.
The Islamic State is a powerful threat, but it is still resorting to murdering unarmed American journalists to display strength. The beading comes as Iraqi forces backed by U.S. airstrikes stopped the group from conquering the town of Amerli after blockading it for almost three months. An estimated 15,000 Shiite Turkmen living there would have been massacred.
The number of U.S. airstrikes on the Islamic State is now at 124. On the same day as the video’s release, the U.S. destroyed 16 vehicles held by the Islamic State near the dam of Mosul. President Obama also decided to send 350 more U.S. soldiers to Iraq to protect American personnel and facilities, raising the number of U.S. soldiers there to 820.
The previous video released by the Islamic State showed the beheading of a Kurdish fighter and the captivity of 14 others. The group also announced that an Al-Qaeda affiliate in Kurdistan, Ansar al-Islam, pledged allegiance to it (a story that Clarion Project originally broke).
The purpose of these releases was to intimidate the Kurds by distracting them from Islamic State retreats. Most importantly, the U.S.-backed Kurds forced the Islamic State to give up the Mosul dam, a piece of infrastructure that the Islamic State could have used to threaten a half-million people.
The Islamic State is burning oil wells as the Kurds push them back. The Kurds have formed all-female units who see their fight against the Islamic State as a struggle for women's rights.
The beheadings of Sotloff and Foley are the top news items for Americans and most of the world today, but the Islamic State should not mistake outrage for weakness: The group has failed to pressure Americans into retreat and appeasement. It has only strengthened the resolve of the U.S. and its international partners.
Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL) will soon introduce legislation authorizing U.S. military action against the Islamic State in Syria. And he won’t be met with significant protests.
A poll released a few days ago found that 64% of Americans support U.S. airstrikes on the Islamic State in Iraq, including 73% of Republicans, 64% of Democrats and 57% of independents. Only 20% oppose.
An almost identical majority, 63%, support expanding U.S. airstrikes on the Islamic State to Syria. This includes 76% of Republicans, 60% of Democrats and 60% of Independents. Only 16% oppose.
Keep in mind, these numbers are before the release of the second beheading video. The numbers will also climb as President Obama makes the case for action and after Congress authorizes airstrikes in Syria.
The Islamic State has triggered a more broad desire for the U.S. government to be stronger on these issues. A Pew poll released on August 28 found that 54% feel that President Obama has not been tough enough on foreign policy and national security, including 34% of Democrats. A miniscule 3% of Americans say he’s been too tough.
A new Rasmussen poll found that 73% of Americans are concerned that the U.S. does not have a strategy against the Islamic State, after President Obama said, “We don’t have a strategy yet” on August 28. Only 25% said they are not concerned by this, including 4% who are not concerned at all. Only 29% approve of his handling of the Islamic State, while 42% disapprove.
Remarkably, 30% say the U.S. should send combat troops to Iraq to fight the group, even though President Obama has ruled out that option and virtually no one is making the case for that decision. In December, only 12% supported that hypothetical deployment. Opposition has fallen from 71% to 41% with 29% undecided.
Americans also understand that this threat will not be over soon. The Pew survey found that 63% of Americans believe that militant Islam will grow in the Middle East. Only 25% believe it will decline.
This latest beheading is only strengthening U.S. resolve to take decisive action against the Islamic State. The fact that such a brutal group has been allowed to gain so much power and able to do so much damage is the logical end result of an extremist Islamic ideology being propagated through the world. Groups like Al Qaeda, Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood all subscribe to the same ideology and are not far behind.
Ryan Mauro is ClarionProject.org’s national security analyst, a fellow with Clarion Project and an adjunct professor of homeland security. Mauro is frequently interviewed on Fox News.
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