Posted on 06/21/2014 6:48:11 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Lost in the flurry of rambling threats to Iraq’s Shiite community during its surprise military blitz last week, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) issued an even bolder statement: a call to arms in Jordan.
Emboldened by its impressive gains in Iraq and southern Syria, the former Al Qaeda affiliate took to social media to announce that it would “soon bring the Islamic state” to “brothers in Jordan”.
According to senior ISIL-linked Jordanian jihadists, the former Al Qaeda affiliate has reportedly pumped $3 million (Dh 11m) into Jordan in the past month for “recruitment purposes” and to fund the medical treatment of its fighters returning from Syria.
Sharing a 370-kilometre border with Syria to the north and 180 kilometres with Iraq to the east, ISIL has identified Jordan as a vital “linchpin” to uniting its young caliphate, whose position would allow the movement to open up new routes for fighters and arms between Iraq and Syria – a move that has been singled out by its leadership as key to widening its wars on Baghdad and Damascus.
Yet even more attractive to ISIL is the 220km stretch of Jordan Valley farmland separating Jordan from Israel and the Palestinian territories – with leaders eyeing a push into Palestine and possible “liberation of Jerusalem” as key to winning over ISIL’s doubters.
In recent months, Jordanian jihadists have served as ISIL’s most vocal critics, with Abu Mohammed Al Maqdisi, who once ranked third in Al Qaeda’s leadership chain, denouncing ISIL as “deviants”.
Key salafist theologian and theorist Omar Mahmoud Othman (better known as Abu Qatada) has taken an even harsher stance, using his continuing trial in Jordan as a stage to attack the movement’s massacres of minorities and referring to its leadership as “dogs”.
The Islamic State will likely find that repeating its successes in Jordan will not be easy, as most in the country still solidly backs the Hashemite monarchy.
And, unlike the undertrained Iraqi government forces or the rapidly depleting Syrian security forces, ISIL would be up against the seasoned veterans of Jordanian intelligence and a well-trained military, who boast more than three decades of antiterror experience and have successfully infiltrated several Al Qaeda cells within Jordan and Iraq. Jordanian authorities have proven deft at applying their antiterror tools along the Syria border, arresting more than 200 suspected ISIL fighters since December last year and sentencing more than a quarter of that number.
The vast majority of Jordanians also have little appetite for the instability brought by hardline Islamist groups, a sentiment tapped into by Hussein Majali, the interior minister, who called on citizens to join the national effort to curb extremism.
Jordan has proven to be two steps ahead of the Islamic State, unleashing in April a new “pre-emptive strike” campaign along its border to prevent the movement from reaching Jordanian soil, engaging in a series of cross-border battles with suspected ISIL fighters that have reportedly left 20 dead and led to more than 100 arrests.
With a missile strike of four suspected ISIL vehicles along the Syria border last week, Jordanian officials returned the Islamic State’s warning shots and a message that ISIL’s path will face a roadblock in Jordan.
um..er..hm.. nope!
Thanks 2ndDivisionVet.
Key salafist theologian and theorist Omar Mahmoud Othman (better known as Abu Qatada) has taken an even harsher stance, using his continuing trial in Jordan as a stage to attack the movement’s massacres of minorities and referring to its leadership as “dogs”.Wow, that's gonna leave a mark on Iran's shills, who have spent years blaming Salafists for, well, everything.
He may be ‘special forces’ trained but he has never seen combat. He is a Hashemite and I grant that they have a storied history. The thing is I doubt that this group ISIS will bother Jordan until they have Iraq well and duly subjugated. The biggest problem is that Jordan’s reasonableness with Israel will end up costing them in the long run. Anwar Sadat found that out. As much as the king may or may not be willing to fight others, it will not matter if he is dead.
Their desire for a world wide caliphate is a long cherished goal. They believe that they are on the verge of having this happen. I would suggest that this is all written of long ago and that the end game does not have Jordan in a position to do anything to stop the evil that is islam.
The king is old as in old news.... his army will not protect him from assassins. His friendliness with Israel will cost him. ISIS will not attack Jordan until Iraq and perhaps several countries are subdued.
Do not kid yourself. This king has nothing extra or special that will protect his people.
Don’t count on it. And this group is stronger and much more dangerous than you know or can imagine.
I would suggest merry that pieces are falling into place
Wait, but you said he would fold like a cheap suit...care to amend that statements ?
This is the unraveling of the Sykes-Picot treaty between France and Great Britain from WWI. These countries will devolve into their historical religious and tribal areas. We ought to wait this out
Exactly.
We'd be much better off with the Sultan restored and living in the Topkapi Palace - with its GPS coordinates programmed into every Trident sub under the ocean.
The Turk knows how to handle the Arabs.
Isn't that the truth...!
If only the rest of the ME was modeled after the Jordanian society...
no that is what will happen....
Look at this from a historical perspective, more or less the last 40 years.
What is happening in Iraq isn't difficult to imagine considering the “state of mind” of those who have been brutally subjugated for generations. They have little to no “backbone”, and that wasn't going to change overnight.
Having someone else fight your battles did not instill within them the desire to fight for their freedom. This could be a good chance for them to “grow a pair”, but it's hard to overcome their natural instincts, and that probably will not change overnight.
On the other hand, they do not have a brutal leader like Saddam anymore that will force them to fight. Thus, you get what you see happening, along with internal “traitors” who were more than happy to accommodate the thugs who are running around killing with impunity.
These scum are making “impressive” gains not due to their strength or reputation. They are terrifying a beaten down populace that has an “infantile” military, for the most part.
Let's see what happens when they go up against a real army. If you believe you'll see anything like what you're seeing in Iraq, you're not playing with a full deck, IMO.
Oh no I don’t think it will necessarily look like Iraq at all..... but I do not think that Jordan has a ‘real’ army. If you said Israel then I would say you are right. The mind set of the middle east is one of subjugation....It is why Muhammad had a chance on the first place.
And you are right time will tell
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.