In June, 2014 ISIS renamed the Islamic State the Caliphate,

and Al-Bahgdadi as its Caliph, or leader

So what happened?

Soviet Russia invaded Afghanistan in 1979

to prop up the communist government of Afghanistan

• The Soviet war in Afghanistan lasted 10 years from 1979 to 1989.

Covert CIA funds supported the Mujahedeen Mujahedeen, Afghan guerrilla fighters

• Pakistan, China, Iran and Saudi Arabia also supported the mujahedeen

President Reagan

Bin Laden in Afghanistan, 1988

• Civil engineer from a wealthy Saudi family• Joined and financed

al-Qaeda

In 1979, in neighboring Iran, an Islamic Revolution was underway:

The Ayatollah Khomeini, a Shiite cleric, became the Supreme leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Revolution brought an end to the U.S. backed monarchy

In 1979, in neighboring Iraq, Saddam Hussein took power

Saddam Hussein, was a Sunni leader in a mostly Shiite country

In 1980, Iraq invaded Iran; the war lasted lasted 9 years

In 1990, Iraq invaded Kuwait

To protect Kuwait, the U.S. invaded Iraq

• Soviet troops left Afghanistan in 1989

• This led to the rise of the Taliban

The Taliban

• A Sunni, Islamic, fundamentalist, political movement that controlled Afghanistan by 1996

• The Taliban banned internet use, playing cards, computer disks, movies, satellite TV, musical instruments and chess• Girls were not

allowed to go to school past the age of nine

Osama bin Laden, leader of al-Qaeda, leader, returned to Afghanistan in 1996

• In 1998, Al-Qaeda affiliated suicide bombers strike U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania

In 2001, the Taliban blew up two ancient Buddhist statues

World Trade Center, September 2001

In 2003, the Second Gulf War began• The war lasted

8 years

Saddam Hussein was captured in 2003

• In 2004, Osama bin Laden claimed he would “bleed America to the point of bankruptcy”

Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, a Jordanian Sunni declared allegiance to Al-Qaeda in 2004

• Named his group al-Qaeda in Iraq• Killed by U.S. in 2006

• Replaced by Abu Oman al Baghdadi, who was killed in 2010

• Replaced by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (Abu Dua)• Renamed his group

Islamic State in Iraq or ISI (later Islamic State in Iraq and Syria – ISIS)

The Arab spring began in Tunisia in 2010

Protests broke out all over the Arab world

Extent of the Arab Spring

Osama Bin Laden killed in 2011

Ayman al-Zawahiri, an Egyptian eye

surgeon, became the new leader of

al-Qaeda

Pro-democracy protesters in Syria failed to oust Bashar al-Assad resign

Uprisings turned to Civil War

• al-Baghdadi expanded his ISIL operations into Syria (ISIL now controls half of Syria)

ISIL = Islamic state of Syria and the Levant)

• In June, 2014 ISIS became the Islamic State, or the Caliphate, and Al-Bahgdadi became the Caliph, or leader

“ISIL is a direct outgrowth of Al-Qaeda in Iraq that grew out of our invasion. Which is an example of unintended consequences. Which is why we should generally aim before we shoot.” Barack Obama

Al-Qaeda affiliates

“…the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peace makers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.” Hermann Goring

“An appeaser is one who eats a crocodile – hoping it will eat him last”

Winston Churchill