• Research
  • Diwan
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Middle East logoCarnegie lettermark logo
LebanonIran
{
  "authors": [
    "Mario Abou Zeid"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
    "Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center"
  ],
  "collections": [],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "menaTransitions",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center",
  "programAffiliation": "MEP",
  "programs": [
    "Middle East"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "Gulf",
    "Syria",
    "Iraq",
    "Middle East"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Political Reform",
    "Security"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media
Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center

‘Islamic Caliphate’ or Dirty Intelligence Trick?

The Islamic State has ambitions in exporting its ideology outside the Middle East. What kind of threat does this pose to the global community?

Link Copied
By Mario Abou Zeid
Published on Aug 30, 2014

Source: Press TV

As Muslims around the world were celebrating the Holy Month of Ramadan, the leader of the ISIL Takfiri terrorist group announced himself the ‘Caliph.’ The ISIL terrorist group, which currently controls parts of eastern Syria and Iraq’s northern and western regions, continues to commit acts of violence against the people of Iraq and Syria. According to reports, around 80 Kurds were massacred and hundreds of women kidnapped as slaves when the terrorist group swept into the northern Iraqi town of Kocho. 

U.S. President Barack Obama has authorized military strikes on ISIL positions in Iraq. The United Nations has announced sanctions on individuals with links to the ISIL. The ISIL Takfiri militants took control of Iraq’s Mosul on June 10. They also took over the city of Tikrit but it was later liberated by the Iraqi army.

To discuss the global impact of ISIL and the threat it poses to countries outside the Middle East, Press TV’s Middle East Files spoke with Carnegie’s Mario Abou Zeid. 

This interview was originally broadcast on Press TV.

About the Author

Mario Abou Zeid

Former Research Analyst, Middle East Center

Abou Zeid was a research analyst at the Carnegie Middle East Center, where his work focuses on political developments in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Iran.

    Recent Work

  • In The Media
    Lebanese Presidential Elections

      Mario Abou Zeid

  • Article
    The Emerging Jihadist Threat in Lebanon

      Mario Abou Zeid

Mario Abou Zeid
Former Research Analyst, Middle East Center
Mario Abou Zeid
Political ReformSecurityGulfSyriaIraqMiddle East

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center

  • Article
    From Hormuz to the Maghreb: The Geopolitical Reach of a Gulf Crisis

    Morocco and Algeria, each in its own way, are having to navigate the global economic fallout of the U.S.-Israeli military campaign against Iran.

      Yasmine Zarhloule

  • Commentary
    Diwan
    Kurdish Rebel Groups Are Wary of Tehran’s Next Move

    Following its deal with the United States, Iran may act against Iraq-based dissidents.

      Wladimir van Wilgenburg

  • Commentary
    Diwan
    The West’s Climate Colonialism in the Greater Middle East

    There is a disturbing structural parallel between the old global energy economy and the new green transition.

      • Angie Omar

      Angie Omar

  • Commentary
    Diwan
    New Syria, Old Lebanon: Absence of the State

    Any move by the United States to make good on Trump’s suggestion that Washington persuade Damascus to confront Hezbollah militarily would have catastrophic consequences. 

      Kheder Khaddour

  • Commentary
    Diwan
    Syria’s Mandatory Imperial Tribulation

    In an interview, Elizabeth Thompson recalls how the country formulated a liberal constitution in 1920, before being denied by France and Britain.

      Michael Young

Get more news and analysis from
Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center
Carnegie Middle East logo, white
  • Research
  • Diwan
  • About
  • Experts
  • Projects
  • Events
  • Contact
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
Get more news and analysis from
Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.