Dabiq, the end of days (notional), and jihadi goals

"Now that it has taken Dabiq, the Islamic State awaits the arrival of an enemy army there, whose defeat will initiate the countdown to the apocalypse. Western media frequently miss references to Dabiq in the Islamic State’s videos, and focus instead on lurid scenes of beheading. “Here we are, burying the first American crusader in Dabiq, eagerly waiting for the remainder of your armies to arrive,” said a masked executioner in a November video, showing the severed head of Peter (Abdul Rahman) Kassig, the aid worker who’d been held captive for more than a year. During fighting in Iraq in December, after mujahideen (perhaps inaccurately) reported having seen American soldiers in battle, Islamic State Twitter accounts erupted in spasms of pleasure, like overenthusiastic hosts or hostesses upon the arrival of the first guests at a party.

The Prophetic narration that foretells the Dabiq battle refers to the enemy as Rome. Who “Rome” is, now that the pope has no army, remains a matter of debate. But Cerantonio makes a case that Rome meant the Eastern Roman empire, which had its capital in what is now Istanbul. We should think of Rome as the Republic of Turkey—the same republic that ended the last self-identified caliphate, 90 years ago. Other Islamic State sources suggest that Rome might mean any infidel army, and the Americans will do nicely."  Atlantic Magazine

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"Islam is a religion of peace and love..."  Yes, that is so for most or at least many Muslims, but for many others the "peace" is for other Muslims, and most especially for those who agree with one's own interpretation of scripture and law.  It is easy for apologists for Islam to ignore basic truths and for gullible, shallow politicians like Bush 43 and Kasich to accept a conveniently benign view of  islamicate civilization but their gullibility is always based on ignorance and the favorable impression made on them by Muslim apologists.

 There is currently a vast quantity of drivel abroad in the land concerning Islam, Salafism, jihadism, etc.  At the meeting I recently attended, a poly sci professor who occupies an endowed chair at a major university opined that what the Islamists want is to recover all the lands once held by the 'ummah.  That would include; Greece, the Balkans, Sicily, southern mainland Italy, Iberia, southern France, etc.  Another professor in the room laughed.  This one actually knew a lot about Islam and told the first,  "ah, you don't understand,  The ones who only want that are the moderates among them."  She was correct.

IS is often referred to by the Arabic acronym da'ish  (dawlat islamiyah f'il 'iraq wa ash-sham).  "Islamic State in Iraq and Syria"  For some reason it is said by Westerners that this is disparaging because it denies them statehood.  The first word "dawlat" means "state" so I don't get that.

Perhaps it is thought disparaging because it confines their statehood to Iraq and Syria.  Now, that might be since their goal as described (correctly in my view) by Wood is a fulfillment of the apocalyptic prophecy of a final cataclysmic battle on the  Plain of Dabiq north of Aleppo, a battle in which Jesus (a nice touch) will return to lead the army of the Muslims (IS) against the army of "Rome" probably us kuffar (infidels) generally but with Americans as a central feature.  According to their expectations, victory at Dabiq will lead to a general unraveling of things and the Day of Judgment.

Now, pilgrims, I understand that many of you whether kuffar or mu'mineen will insist that this is all BS and only oil is real, but Wood and I think you are wrong.

If my new best friend Wood and I are right then the ongoing wave of terror attacks are really intended to provoke us saliibiyeen (crusaders) into coming to Dabiq where they want to dance.  Save me a dance, children.  Save me a dance.  pl  

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/03/what-isis-really-wants/384980/

Comments

[Bill Herschel]

Thank you very, very much for referring us to this article. The video alone is worth a ton.

I would point out the following article about the effect on France's tourist industry from the Paris attacks: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/20/business/international/paris-attacks-hit-luxury-hotels-particularly-hard.html

France lives by tourism. This guy the French police killed has made a serious mistake. France is currently tilting very hard toward Russia. Assad? Who cares. Now, if Saudi Arabia will step up and book every hotel room in Paris, that might change things. But France has already sold them a ton of military stuff: http://www.moonofalabama.org/2015/11/terror-attacks-in-france-some-related-links.html and the Saudi's are feelling the draft a little these days.

Will Obama hold out? Of course, he will (who's going to pay for the Obama Library?). Just as Ms. Clinton will bloviate to her clique at the Council on Foreign Relations. But the near term will tell us whether ISIS a) is able to do more terrorist stuff outside the ME, and b) how they like fighting against Russia... and now, France.

But, to reiterate, thank you.

[Charles Cameron]

Col Lang, all:

Graeme Wood's Atlantic piece this March certainly seems to have brought the eschatology of IS to widespread attention, although then-CJCS Dempsey had spoken of IS' "apocalyptic, end-of-days strategic vision" in August 2014.

Wood's piece, however, is only the tip of the iceberg -- we're now fortunate to have Will McCants' book, The ISIS Apocalypse, to fill in the details and explain the ways in which IS' eschatological focus has shifted over time, from Zarqawi to Ibrahim, from Mahdi to Caliphate, and from short to medium term.

http://www.amazon.com/The-ISIS-Apocalypse-Strategy-Doomsday/dp/1250080908

It strikes me as interesting that the Dabiq hadith is not one that is indexed in either of David Cook's two very comprehensive volumes on Islamic eschatology, nor in J-P Filiu's Apocalypse in Islam. McCants' book has almost 20 pages of appendixes quoting and annotating hadith and tafsir relevant to IS' stated beliefs.

[Babak Makkinejad]

I think the Amaleks were ancient Aremnians.

Just shows you how ignorant people could be.

[turcopolier]

All

We will post a SITREP on the war in NW Syria as soon as we have someone free to write it. pl

[Fred]

Booby,

There is a viable force on the ground, refereed to here as the R+6. Hopefully we stay out of their way while giving them what target data we have.

[anatol]

Nothing ominous or unexpected here. I understand that the federal law makes life sentence automatically eligible for parole after 30 years, absent bad behaviour in prison. Pollard has been arrested exactly 30 years ago, and it was long understood that without pardon or commutation by the President he would be released not earlier than at the end of November 2015. Apparently not later either.

[turcopolier]

fred

That's really true but in the realm of, if only... If Turkey were playing their former role in NATO it would be easy to bring in a heavy US corps sized force through Iskendurun, mass north of the border and then play hammer and anvil with IS on the Dabiq plain. R+6 would make a great anvil. pl

[turcopolier]

All

According to RT the Russians are writing "For Paris" on their bombs and cruise missiles. pl

[Macgupta123]

There is a good dialog on "Islamophobia" here, 55 minutes long.

http://www.wnyc.org/story/islamophobia/

[shaun]

Islam is a religion of peace and love and whatever, Pop tarts. One of my best friends is Muslim, and last time I spoke to him he was arguing with his son over what flavor of pop tarts to get. It was a big issue, for that Mulsim. He may admit his kid is a terrorist, as he whines over stupid things and keeps them up at night. That is the extent of their national security related behavior. maybe Wolf Blitzer should be informed. It is better not to even watch TV these days, if you watch wolf blitzer, there will probably be more attacks. Ignore Wolf and CNN, and maybe the problem will resolve itself. Otherwise, I do not care, at all. No one is going to attack me, here, in the USA, in Medford. I don't really care if they attack NYC. Its just where Wall St. Is. If they get the electrical cords, I have a candle. Not my issue. So I am not involved in this scenario. Goodnite. It only exists if you let it. For the vast majority of us, it is totally irrelevant. Time to go feed the cat. Maybe a Syrian monkey will eat my Cat for dinner. I hope not. If it does I'll get a tank and blow a hole in that side of the street.

[toto]

Apparently young Frenchmen are joining the army en masse.

http://www.lemonde.fr/attaques-a-paris/article/2015/11/19/au-centre-de-recrutement-des-armees-ce-coup-la-c-est-bon-je-m-engage_4813846_4809495.html

[Johnny Reims]

Col.Lang
Thank you very much for this information. Fascinating, indeed. I was not aware that at least among some Sunnis, a belief exists of the Second Coming of the Messiah (without the previous Resurrection) during the “end times”. Accent on sans Resurrection.

I would think that perceiving reality is paramount when one is in a zero sum conflict, which is what this ISIS crowd desires on the fields of Dabiq.

From a Catholic perspective, I am speculating but I reckon some of this comes down to what Aquinas was discussing in the Third Part of the Summa, question 56, Article II. Either “the effectual cause” – what Aquinas perhaps calls newness of life in reply to objection 4- helps in perceiving reality (and therefore aiding strategic intel) in the here and now and to a greater extent than sans Resurrection. Or it don’t help at all.

Again, thanks.

[Fred]

Col.,

Sadly this president doesn't know how to win a war. Not sure of the valid of this but it sure seems to fit the temper of the man:
http://freebeacon.com/national-security/us-pilots-confirm-obama-admin-blocks-75-percent-of-isis-strikes/

[jsn]

I think I get the jihadis, I grew up in Texas, the PHDs, they're beyond me!

[Peter in Toronto]

Hi Col. Lang and subscribers.

I was quite disturbed when I realized how prevalent in the popular culture the idea of an enlightened Islam has become, myself being a victim of some of the myths and deliberate deceit. I'm currently doing research into the origin of this revisionism that was somehow injected into the collective mind.

Just how badly we've become misled about our relationship with Islam is evident when you let a scholar deconstruct the history for you. Please view this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_Qpy0mXg8Y

[Kim Sky]

Well... end of days. I know of a whole lot of Christians that believe in apocalypse, and seems US political/military decisions reflect those views...

As far as the Paris attacks go, this is guerrilla warfare: Initiate violence -- which will push the pacifists/non-radicals toward a more militant response. All this anti-muslim propaganda is going to make relations within the West very difficult.

i.e. Algerian War

[Medicine Man]

What are the odds that France is going to join Russia's efforts in Syria?

[Alexey]

I wouldn't think it's anything more than propaganda from RT. There is huge discontent with how west treated Russian plane bombing (simple calculation feeds it) and Charlie Hebdo caricatures. Military in this regard is usually very easily offended.
What I saw instead (though could be a photoshop) is a face of "russo-mongolian aggressor" from internet meme painted on some bombs.

[Cee]

I have to disagree. Yes, I know this is from Press TV

Muslim scholarly authorities – even those deluded enough to support the “Syrian rebels” – have unanimously repudiated Baghdadi’s bogus caliphate. Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the best-known pro-Syrian-rebels TV scholar, dismissively rejected Baghdadi’s claim. Rachid Ghannouchi, the leader of Tunisia’s Al-Nahda Party, called Baghdadi’s self-promotion “reckless,” “deceptive,” and “ridiculous.” The most important group working to restore the caliphate, Hizb-ut-Tahrir, said Baghdadi’s proclamation distorted the reality of what a caliphate is supposed to be.

Even Assem Barqawi, the spokesperson for the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front – an erstwhile ally of ISIL in the Syrian war – spurned al-Baghdadi’s claim, and ripped ISIL for its brutality.

In short, al-Baghdadi and ISIL have no support whatsoever among Muslims. They are loathed even by their fellow ultra-Salafis, Wahhabis and Takfiris.

Worse yet, al-Baghdadi and ISIL are not just being hyped – they are also being armed, trained, and dressed in identical black Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles uniforms. The money is coming from US taxpayers, CIA drug-money slush funds, and CIA-asset Persian Gulf oil sheikhs.

Why are the CIA and the Zionists supporting ISIL and promoting al-Baghdadi’s fake caliphate? And why does Israel provide support and medical treatment to ISIL terrorists in Syria?

This paradoxical situation – a self-proclaimed “caliph of Islam” who has no support among Muslims, but massive support from Zionists and imperialists – points to an ineluctable conclusion: ISIL is a manufactured fake-opposition group.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2014/07/14/371210/who-is-abu-bakr-albaghdadi/

[Cee]

Alexey,

Col. Lang is correct. The photo

http://nypost.com/2015/11/20/russians-write-for-paris-on-bombs-destined-for-syria/

[Cee]

In addition:

This would include al-Baghdadi.

JERUSALEM – Syrian rebels who would later join the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIS, were trained in 2012 by U.S. instructors working at a secret base in Jordan, according to informed Jordanian officials.

The officials said dozens of future ISIS members were trained at the time as part of covert aid to the insurgents targeting the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in Syria. The officials said the training was not meant to be used for any future campaign in Iraq.

The Jordanian officials said all ISIS members who received U.S. training to fight in Syria were first vetted for any links to extremist groups like al-Qaida.

In February 2012, WND was first to report the U.S., Turkey and Jordan were running a training base for the Syrian rebels in the Jordanian town of Safawi in the country’s northern desert region.

That report has since been corroborated by numerous other media accounts.

Last March, the German weekly Der Spiegel reported Americans were training Syrian rebels in Jordan.

http://www.wnd.com/2014/06/officials-u-s-trained-isis-at-secret-base-in-jordan/

[turcopolier]

Cee

I know you love conspiracy theories and want to believe in plots. but, you have this wrong. First and most importantly I will say once again that Islam has no central authority, no hierarchy and no priesthood. Positions as to what make up Islam are a matter of consensus (ijma') among groups of Muslims, groups of various sizes. The opinions of scholars have no value in Islam except as their own personal opinions. What matters is the consensus of those who accept the ijma' that governs IS or AQ. Those are the ones who will kill you, not some group of learned sheikhs at Al-Azhar or elsewhere. did the US train jihadi Syrian rebels in Jordan and Turkey? Yes we did and I say now as I said then thatthis was a terrible error. these were people who were on the AQ side of things but many have now defected to IS. Does any of this invalidate anything I wrote about Dabiq, etc? Not a bit. pl

[William R. Cumming]

Another excellent comment IMO! Now just add Communism and Capitalism to major world religions.

[William R. Cumming]

P.L.! Wondering if you might wish to post on the rule of ego and hubris in Islam? Exactly how is doctrine formed in Islam, if at all?

[turcopolier]

WRC

I have explained the process of formation of views of Islam among Muslims many times. See my response to Cee below. pl