Former Ba’athists Rising Through the Ranks of ISIL

by Dana Simcox The Islamic State owes much of its military success to the expertise and leadership provided by Saddam Hussein’s former army officers. ISIL has managed to develop an extensive hierarchy brimming with old Ba’athist party members from pre-war Iraq. Though the Ba’athist creed is purportedly secular and nationalist—seemingly at odds with the fanatical…

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AIC’s Executive Director speaks with NPR Berlin and America Abroad on Countering Violent Extremism

AIC’s Executive Director, Zainab Al-Suwaij spoke at a live town hall event in Philadelphia with Jacki Lyden and NPR’s Paris correspondent Eleanor Beardsley from Berlin. America Abroad Media and NPR Berlin partnered together and invited audiences in both Philadelphia and Berlin, Germany for an international town hall meeting to discuss ISIS’ recruitment and the isolation of Muslim communities in…

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