August
28, 2014
A Global Epiphany on ISIS
It took only a
moment for the whole
world to become aware
of the savagery and
the delight in the
slaughter of human
beings by Islamist
extreme groups. That
moment was the display
of a skilled video of
a masked jihadist in
black clothes
apparently preparing
the brutal beheading
of James Foley, the
40-year-old American
photo-journalist, on
August 19, 2014.
The whole
world has been
horrified by the
insane, uncivilized
behavior of ISIS (or
ISIL) and its
rejoicing in its
deranged conduct.
There could be no
better illustration of
the sadistic nature
and the level of
barbarity of the
Islamic jihadists,
ISIS, and others. Yet
curiously, previous
public displays of
that barbarity
attracted little, if
any, notice by the
Western media and
political leaders in
the U.S. and Europe.
Earlier in August,
the ISIS terrorists
released another video
portraying a number of
their group preparing
to slaughter with
knives some Syrians,
associated with the
Free Syrian Army, who
were tied up. This
video was almost
wholly ignored by the
Western media, as were
the killings by ISIS
of hundreds of people,
attacks on minority
groups, and
instillation of a
doctrinal Islamic
state, a modern
caliphate based on
sharia law.
The Western
countries have reacted
with some strong
verbal language and
mild military action
to the murder of
Foley. British Prime
Minister David Cameron
asserted that Islamic
jihadism is not a
distant problem, but
rather “our concern
here and now.”
President Barack
Obama spoke of the
United States being
“relentless” in
reacting to ISIS and
also ordered air
strikes in northern
Iraq against ISIS to
stop its advance. In
addition, the
revelation that a
considerable
contingent of
Europeans, and some
Americans, have joined
ISIS, and other
Islamist jihadists,
and that the murderer
of Foley is reputed to
be a 23-year-old
London rapper of
Egyptian origin, has
been a wake-up call to
Western security
services about
security in their own
countries.
It
is heartening that
Middle Eastern, as well
as Western, countries
have realized the danger
to their countries, have
condemned the
atrocities, and are
preparing to react to
them. Countries not
always friendly to each
other or to the West are
beginning to line up.
They now recognize that
the mujahedeen fighters
in Afghanistan, the
jihadists in Algeria and
Iraq, the Muslim
Brotherhood, Boko Haram
in Nigeria, and Hamas in
the Gaza Strip all have
the same disregard for
human life and are
characterized by
inhumane zealotry.
Saudi Arabia
has for some time been
concerned by the
growing power of ISIS,
and of radical Sunnis
(takfirism). Its
grand mufti, Abdulaziz
al-Sheikh, now refers
to ISIS as enemy
number one, against
which decisive
measures must be
taken. The country
has already pledged
$100 million to combat
terrorism in the
Middle East. Kuwait
has closed the Islamic
charities that it
believes give money to
the jihadists.
Western observers
have long known this
to be the case.
Tactical
alliances in the
Middle East are
forever changing. The
Kurdish group PKK,
formerly regarded as a
terrorist
organization, is
welcomed by the U.S.
and the EU, as helpful
in fighting ISIS in
Iraq and Syria.
Turkey, which has
allowed most of ISIS's
supplies to come
through its territory,
has, at least
temporarily, been less
hostile to the Kurds
in the north of its
country. The
loathsome Bashar
al-Assad Syrian regime
has been bombing ISIS
bases in Syria. Even
Qatar, a country that
has substantially
funded terrorist
groups, is now
reconsidering its aid
to them.
Prime Minister
Cameron insisted that
immediate action is
essential to stem the
onslaught of the
exceptional dangerous
terrorist movement.
There is no choice
but to rise to the
challenge. He might
have gone farther and
looked to Israel as
the example showing
the way to meet and
overcome the
challenge.
In this
necessary battle
against the evil
forces of ISIS and of
Islamic jihadists,
aspects of Israeli
behavior against
aggression may be
useful, even if used
as a metaphor. One of
the elements of that
behavior, used first
to deal with attacks
on Jews in prewar
Europe and now
incorporated into the
training of the Israel
Defense Forces (IDF),
is Krav Maga (Contact
Combat).
This form of
combat was devised by
a Jewish man named
Imrich Lichtenfeld,
born in Budapest, who
lived in Bratislava
(Slovakia) as a
champion boxer and
wrestler. Disturbed
by the prevalent
anti-Semitism in the
1930s, he worked out
street-fighting
tactics to deal with
Fascist and Nazi
assaults against Jews,
and the anti-Semitic
thugs. He left for
Palestine before the
Second World War and
taught his system to
the IDF. Krav Maga
can best described as
a combination of
wrestling, boxing,
Muay Thai, Kung fu,
and Savate. It is a
combination of kicks,
strikes, and different
forms of punches.
What is
important are the
principles of Krav,
which, using it as a
metaphor, are valuable
for peace in the
Middle East.
Individuals must
first avoid
confrontation and
should remove
themselves from
danger. They must
then try to
de-escalate any verbal
interaction or
dispute. If these do
not succeed, the
individuals, or
Israel, must start a
process not only of
self-defense against
all variety of
attacks, but also of a
vigorous
counter-offensive as
soon as possible. The
tactics include
hitting as hard as you
can, neutralizing the
enemy as soon as
possible, using what
you can to get the
upper hand, and
maintaining awareness
of surroundings. They
also entail learning
to understand the
psychology of
confrontation, and
identification of
potential threats
before they occur.
The actress
Jennifer Lopez was one
of the celebrities who
trained for a number
of months in the art
of Krav Maga. She
obtained better
starring roles in her
movies as a result.
The Western countries
should now adopt the
principles of Krav and
take part, if not
always star, in the
fight against Islamist
jihadists.
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