This
book analyzes the origins and organizational structure of Islamic State (IS), examining
its military triumphs and success in securing new recruits via social media. From
its base in Iraq and Syria, IS has spread globally with 17 regional affiliates
from Indonesia to Nigeria and sleeper cells in at least 60 countries, capable
of atrocities like the Paris attack. To understand the threat of IS, this book explores
its organizational structure and underlying ideology, and implications for
Western efforts to attack the leadership of IS. The ways IS has grown by
swiftly adapting its military strategy, developing creative forms of funding and
efforts to win hearts and minds of locals are identified. The author highlights
how the competing individual national interests between the Western military
alliance and local partners have served to strengthen IS. With its ideology
spreading ever further, this book warns of the looming violent confrontation
between democratic and Islamist forces. This volume speaks to academics in
international relations, security studies and strategic studies, policy-makers
and interested parties.

List of Abbreviations.- Chapter One: The Rise of the Islamic State.- Chapter Two: Accounting for Islamic State's Appeal and Resilience.- Chapter Three: Responding to Islamic State and Getting it Wrong.- Chapter Four: Fighting Islamic State: A Call to Action.- Chapter Five: Gazing into the Crystal Ball.- Bibliography.- Index.

Hussein Solomon is Professor in the Department of Political Studies and Governance at the University of the Free State, South Africa and is a Senior Research Associate of the Israeli-based Research on Islam and Muslims in Africa (RIMA). His most recent book was entitled Terrorism and Counter-Terrorism: Fighting Insurgency from Al Shabaab, Ansar Dine and Boko Haram (Palgrave Macmillan, 2015).