Social Identity Group and Human (In)Security - The Case of Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS)

Abstract

The paper uses social identity group theory and human insecurity to examine the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS). After first defining social group identity and its characteristics, the paper reviews the Al-Qaeda ideology that serves as the foundation of ISIS, before turning attention to the message and legacy of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi and their profound influence on ISIS. The paper concludes by arguing that only by ending the marketplace of identities can stability be restored to Iraq and Syria.

Keywords: Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS), Al Qaeda, Iraq, Syria, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Osama bin Laden