B. V. DOLGOV

Candidate of Historical Sciences

Center for Arab Studies of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences

Keywords: Islamic state, Islamist ideology, Arab spring, Syrian crisis, Western goals

The doctrine of the Islamic state as an alternative, according to its ideologists, to the" infidel and corrupt West", based on the "eternal and just laws of the Koran", continues to attract the attention of both Muslims and people of other civilizations. This is facilitated by the aggravation of socio-economic problems that occur in the Arab-Muslim world and, to a sufficient extent, in the EU and US countries, where the crisis also affects the spiritual spheres of Western post-Christian society. The terrorist expansion of the Islamic State (IS) organization can significantly destabilize the situation in the countries of the region. This primarily concerns Libya, where there is no central authority that would control the entire territory of the country, and on its land Islamist leaders have declared joining the IG.

The doctrine of the Islamic state, which is based on the early and" authentic", according to its followers, Islam of the time of the Prophet Muhammad and the four "righteous caliphs" (the first caliphs who ruled after the Prophet Muhammad - Abu Bakr, Omar, Uthman and Ali), has a fairly long history.

Its founders in recent history were such prominent Muslim figures as Abu Ala al-Maududi (1903-1979), the founder of the Islamist Jamaat-i Islami party in Pakistan, and Sayyid Sayyid Qutb (1906-1966), the ideologist of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood association. According to Islamist ideologues, " Islamic doctrines, laws and moral and ethical norms are universal in relation to any time and place. They are a powerful incentive for development in any era, and only they should regulate the life of Muslim society."¹. A state created on the basis of Islam, according to them, will solve all socio-economic problems and contribute to the establishment of Islamic social justice under Sharia law.

SWORD JIHAD AND ITS SUPPORTERS

The Islamists used the writings of prominent Muslim ulama of various eras to support their doctrinal positions. The most radical supporters of the creation of an Islamic state, who considered " jihad of the sword "(holy war) to be the only way to achieve their goal, quite often quoted the statements of the Salafi theologian of the Hanbali madhhab Ibn Taymiyyah (1263-1328). In one of his fatwas (religious messages), he affirmed on the basis of verse 49 of Sura 5 of the Qur'an* the need to create an Islamic state and "declare jihad to a tyrant ruler who does not govern in accordance with Sharia"².

One of the most famous-

* Verse 49 of Surah 5 (Arabic) - Al-Maida-Meal) says: "And We prescribed to them... that a soul is for a soul, and an eye for an eye... And those who do not judge because of what Allah has revealed , they are the wrongdoers."

The most important modern ideologues of the Islamic state doctrine, who also preached the jihadist way of its creation, was the above-mentioned S. Qutb. In his work" Milestones on the Path", which the Russian researcher A. V. Korovikov rightly characterizes as the quintessence of his teaching, Qutb developed the concept of two stages of development of a truly Islamic society, as well as the theory of building an Islamic state as the embodiment of the supreme power of Allah - Hakimiyya and jihad as the way to create such a state. Qutb insisted that " jihad is not a defensive war, but an offensive one."³. Islam is bound to attack the Jahiliyyah, whether it threatens it or not. The concept of Jahiliyyah and the need for jihad against it were professed in various parts of the Islamic world by extremist Islamist groups, in particular, Qutbists (followers of Qutb) and Takfiri* in Algeria.

The Salafi movement also proclaims the ideology of returning to early Islamic "authentic Muslim values, traditions and socio-political practices". However, not all supporters of the Islamic State, including Salafists, are radical Islamists who preach jihad and resort to terrorist methods. Moreover, it is groundless to consider Islam, one of the world's religions, which is professed by 1.6 billion people. a person in the world, an ideological basis for violence and terrorist acts. They are committed by extremist groups that use slogans of Islam as a cover.

"THE ALGERIAN VERSION"

A number of ideologists of the Islamic state considered it possible to build it in a peaceful evolutionary way as a result of the spread of Quranic knowledge and the perception of Islamic culture and Muslim moral and spiritual values by society. For example, in Algeria in the early 1990s, Abbasi Madani, the leader of the mass Islamist movement " Islamic Salvation Front "(IFS), proposed the creation of an Islamic state based on democratic elections, which in Algeria at that time were won by the IFS. Moreover, a concrete plan was developed for building an Islamic state, in which its ideologists saw the guarantor of compliance with Sharia law. In the Algerian version, the six ministries of Finance, Economy, Defense, Education, Health and Justice were supposed to directly manage the entire system of State bodies of a given State. Under the head of Government, an Advisory Council (Majlis al-shura) was established, represented by the most respected Muslim theologians, who had "the right to interpret controversial issues that might arise during the application of Sharia law" ^.4

The Advisory Council, as the supreme organ of the Islamic state, was present in almost all of its projects, which were developed by Islamist ideologues. For example, S. Qutb, whose work formed the basis of the programs of many Islamist groups, paid special attention to the Advisory Council. He considered it the most important body of the Islamic state, where the best representatives of the Muslim community (Ummah) should be elected. According to the Qutb, " The Consultative Council should take precedence over the executive branch and control its activities, being the representative of the will of the entire Ummah."⁵. At the same time, as for the concept of Western-style democracy, the attitude of most ideologists of the Islamic state, in contrast to the head of the Algerian IFS Abbasi Madani, was negative. The main argument in support of this position is that, according to their statements, "democratic liberalism is a political system."

* Takfir (accusation of disbelief-Arabic) - anathemization in Islam. Takfiris accuse everyone of disbelief, including Muslims who do not share their views . author's note).

a product of European civilization, which is not applicable in the Muslim society, which has completely different historical roots, traditions and culture. The very concept of "democracy" is rather vague and contradictory, since all Western ideologies of the 20th century-liberalism, communism, and even fascism-claimed to embody true democracy in their doctrines"⁶. Many supporters of the Islamic state also call for its expansion and inclusion of all territories where Muslims live. Thus, according to Ali Benhaj, one of the leaders of Algerian Islamists, the proposed establishment of an Islamic state in Algeria in the 1990s was only a stage on the way to achieving the strategic goal, which he defined as "the re-establishment of an Islamic caliphate, which should become the spiritual homeland of all Muslims of the world"⁷. Attempts to create an Islamic state by Sunni Islamist movements that came to power took place in Sudan in the 1980s and in Afghanistan in the 1990s. Certain steps in this direction, namely, the Islamization of social and political life, were taken during the Arab Spring of 2011-2013: in Egypt-by the Muslim Brotherhood movement, in Tunisia-by the Ennahda (Renaissance) party, in Libya, where Sharia is declared the basis of legislation, in the province of Derna, Islamists proclaimed an emirate living under Sharia law. So far, however, most of these "Islamic projects" have failed.

THE IRANIAN PROJECT

A special case of the Shiite model of the Islamic State is Iran, where the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) was proclaimed after the victory of the anti-Shah Islamic Revolution in 1979. The Islamic project in Iran has undergone a long evolution, and currently its state-political structure includes republican institutions of executive and legislative power represented by the president and Parliament, which are elected in general elections.

Along with them, the highest authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran are the spiritual leader -the most famous and authoritative Shiite theologian (Rahbar) and the Supervisory Board of 12 theologians and jurists, who monitor all decisions made by the president and parliament for compliance with Sharia law.

A special feature of the state structure of the Islamic Republic of Iran is such structures as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Organization of Basijs (people's squads), designed to protect the "gains of the Islamic Revolution". It should be noted that the Islamic Republic of Iran shows sufficient socio-economic achievements in its development, despite the constant military-political and economic pressure from the United States and the EU.

However, it is unlikely that the Shiite "Islamic project" of Iran will be able to become an example for supporters of the creation of an Islamic state in the Arab world. First of all, because all Islamist groups that advocate this doctrine, including the Islamic State, profess the Sunni direction of Islam and are hostile to Shiite Iran.

In turn, the Iranian leadership stated that it will not allow the creation of an "extremist terrorist organization" near its borders, which it considers IS, and will provide the necessary support in the fight against it to both Iraq and Syria.

As a result of its successful offensive in northern Iraq and in the Syrian province of Raqqa in August-September 2014, IS declared the creation of a "caliphate"in the territories it controls. ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was declared its head. IS has stated its intention to build its state institutions "in accordance with Sharia law" and even print its own passports and introduce its own currency.

ISLAMIC STATE: FIRST STEPS

The history of IS goes back to the group created in 1999 by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, one of the leaders of radical Islamists in Afghanistan, and called the "Group of Monotheism and Jihad" (Jamaat at-Tawhid wal-jihad). Despite his shared goals and jihadist ideology, and al-Zarqawi's pledge of allegiance to Osama bin Laden, he maintained his organization's independence from bin Laden's al-Qaeda, both because of his personal ambitions and because of his more radical stance and interpretation of takfir.

Since the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United States and its allies, Islamists have been forced to rethink their strategy. Al-Qaeda has increasingly turned into a network organization aimed at fighting the West, and on the periphery of the Islamic world (such as Bosnia and Chechnya) I set myself the task of maximizing the destabilization of the situation in these regions. Al-Zarqawi's structure, on the other hand, has changed-

It moved to the heart of the Islamic world, where it tried to create an Islamic state. In 2002-2003, al - Zarqawi established a base for his activities on the territory of Iraq (in the region between Iraqi Kurdistan, the "Sunni triangle" in central Iraq and Syria). As a result, Zarqawi was able to respond to the American invasion in 2004 with a series of high-profile terrorist attacks, which dramatically increased his credibility in jihadist circles and attracted many new supporters. At the same time, the al-Zarqawi group joined Al-Qaeda. In 2004-2006, the group was called Al-Qaeda Mezhdurechye (also known as Al-Qaeda in Iraq).

IS was formed in 2006 during the occupation of Iraq by the US and its allies. At that time, this Sunni Islamist group was fighting both the occupying forces and the Shiite Iraqi community, on whose representatives the United States relied in its policy in Iraq at that time. However, the main goal of the IG was to create an Islamic state in the future, both in Iraq and in neighboring countries.

This slogan is proclaimed in the very name of the group - "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant "(Levant is the Latin translation of the Arabic term al-Sham, which is used in the old name of the IG, and means the region that includes modern Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and part of Jordan).

SYRIA, IRAQ. "NEXT EVERYWHERE"?

Since the beginning of the Syrian civil conflict in 2011, IS took part in it on the side of the anti-Assad opposition. Some of the IS formations entered Syrian territory and joined the armed struggle and terrorist actions carried out by a number of radical Islamist groups, including those associated with Al-Qaeda, against the government army and the leadership of Bashar al-Assad.

IS militants have seized several districts of the remote Raqqa province, where the majority of the population is represented by Sunni Muslims, and announced the introduction of Sharia law here. The Islamic State's governing body was the Consultative Council of Jihad Fighters (Majlis Shura al-Mujahideen). During this period, the leading NATO countries, as well as the monarchies of the Persian Gulf, supported all the Syrian opposition forces that supported the overthrow of President Bashar al-Assad, including the Islamic State.

The successful advance of IS militants in Iraq in 2014 and the creation of a" caliphate " was largely due to the fact that Islamists took advantage of the discontent of some Sunni tribes in the north and west of Iraq with the dominance of Shiites in the country's leadership and the infringement of Sunni rights. ISIS intervened in the conflict between the Sunni community and the government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. Having received some support from Sunni clans, IS launched an offensive deep into Iraq, capturing a number of cities, including the second largest city of Mosul, and advancing to Baghdad. Moreover, Islamist militants captured a large number of American-made weapons abandoned by the retreating Iraqi army.

At the same time, according to some news agencies, former soldiers of Saddam Hussein's army who had experience in using such weapons joined the ranks of the IS. In the occupied areas, ISIS carried out repression and terror against national and religious minorities (Kurds, Shiite Muslims, Yezidis, Christians). Among those executed by IS militants, according to several media reports, was a Shiite judge who handed down the death sentence in 2003. To Hussein.

IS leaders threatened Jordan and tried to extend their influence to Lebanon. However, the Lebanese army and the armed groups of the Hezbollah movement that supported it were able to successfully counteract this. The leadership of the Islamic State appealed to "all Muslims to support the Islamic state and stand up for it"⁸. This call was probably accepted to some extent, since a significant number of foreign mercenaries from the Arab-Muslim world, the European Union (EU), the United States, Muslim regions of Russia, as well as Uighur Muslims from China are currently fighting in the ranks of the IS.

EUROPEANS IN THE ISLAMIC STATE

Leaders of EU member states have expressed concern over the growing number of EU citizens participating in the activities of radical Islamist groups and the threat to public security that may arise if they return to Europe. So, David Cameron, the Prime Minister of England, in September 2014 introduced a bill to Parliament that prohibits entry to England by its citizens who fought in the war

as part of extremist armed groups.

According to official French sources, there are about 700 Muslim French citizens active in armed Islamist groups in Syria and Iraq, ⁹ while other sources say up to 1,000 are active. According to the English press-up to 800 British citizens, according to Russian official data-more than 1,700 immigrants from the Russian Federation. In this regard, it should be noted that the leaders of the "Islamic State" in Iraq threatened to promote "jihad" in Russia in order to" liberate Chechnya " and create an Islamic state in the territories of southern Russia and the North Caucasus.

The entry of Muslim citizens of EU countries into radical Islamist groups is partly due to the relatively high "earnings" offered for mercenary fighters. At the same time, the rise of Islamist ideology, including its radical trends, is observed among Muslim communities in many EU countries.

To a large extent, this was the result of the failure of the policy of multiculturalism, which the leaders of the leading Western European countries were forced to admit. The full integration of Muslim migrants and their subsequent generations, born in Europe and granted EU citizenship, has not occurred ¹⁰. Among some European Muslims, the influence of neo-fundamentalist trends is spreading, which to a certain extent express social and partly civilizational protest. The number of their followers is relatively small. However, this category of European Muslims is characterized by a rejection of European values, a refusal to integrate and a desire to preserve their Islamic identity. Leaders of organizations created on this ideological basis preach the closed existence of the Muslim community according to the laws of Islam. For example, in France in 2011, Sheikh Ahmed Jaballah, a well-known Muslim ideologue and preacher, was elected chairman of the Union of Islamic Organizations of France (SIOF), established in France in the 1980s.

He is of Tunisian origin and adheres to the doctrinal concepts of the Islamist Tunisian Ennahda party and the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood association. ¹¹ Ahmed Jaballah is also the director of the European Institute for Humanitarian Studies, which was opened in 2001 in Saint-Denis, a suburb of Paris, where more than 400,000 people from North Africa live. This institute has a theological department where future imams are trained. Its academic council includes well-known Sunni ideologues, such as Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who is a permanent resident of Qatar. Al-Qaradawi is an implacable opponent of President Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian leadership, calling in his fatwas for jihad against the current Syrian authorities. This position of al-Qaradawi is related both to the fact that B. Assad heads the secular Arab Socialist Renaissance Party (PASV), and because a significant part of the Syrian leadership is represented by Alawites*, whom Sunni ideologues do not recognize as Muslims and consider "infidels".

To a certain extent, the rise of Islamist sentiment in Europe is also a reaction of the Muslim community to the current manifestations of racism and Islamophobia. In turn, external factors, such as the" Arab Spring", crisis phenomena and conflicts in a number of Arab countries, in which political Islam movements are involved, lead to the strengthening of radical Islamism, the ideology of which influences the Muslim diaspora in Europe.

THE ORIGINS OF "POLITICAL ISLAM"

To a certain extent, the Arab Spring (2011-2013) gave a new impetus to the spread of the concept of the Islamic state and Islamist ideology in general, including its radical trends. However, this movement itself in countries such as Tunisia and Egypt was basically a social protest against the corrupt regimes that had ruled for decades. political regimes, worsening socio-economic problems and lack of real democratic freedoms ¹².

In Libya and Syria, where similar problems exist, although to a much lesser extent, protest movements under the slogans of the "Arab Spring" were used by external forces to actively interfere in the internal processes in these countries and achieve their goals here13.

* Alawites - a trend in the Shiite sense of Islam that emerged in the X century AD; it is an eclectic mix of elements of the Shiite faith, Gnostic Christianity and pre-Muslim cults and beliefs. Alawites reject many prescriptions of Islam, revere Jesus Christ and a number of Christian saints, and celebrate some Christian holidays. See: Islam / / Encyclopedia, Moscow, Nauka, 1991.

At the same time, during this period, in a number of Arab countries, on the wave of social protest, the movements of "political Islam"began to strengthen their influence in society and come to power. Public support for Islamist movements, especially in Tunisia and Egypt, was explained by the hopes placed at that time on the Islamic project, which was seen as an alternative to the bankrupt corrupt regimes that implemented the "Arab version" of the Western socio-economic model.

However, the hopes placed on the Islamists were not fulfilled. When they came to power, they were unable to solve any of the socio-economic problems that the Arab Spring protest was directed against. While the economic situation worsened, the Islamists carried out the Islamization of socio-political life. Radical Islamists, who carried out terrorist actions against representatives of other faiths and their political opponents, actively came to the forefront of this campaign. Many supporters of Islamist movements in these countries traveled to Syria, Iraq and other "hot spots", where they joined the ranks of armed groups operating against government forces, declaring their goal to create an Islamic state.

As for the reaction of Western countries to the expansion of the Islamic State, in the beginning they did not show much activity in supporting the Iraqi leadership of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki. So, the United States stated the need to " respect the rights of all faiths, including Sunnis, and resolve the conflict between the Iraqi government and the Sunni community by forming a coalition government with a large representation of Sunnis."

Moreover, acting Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki was offered to resign and not apply for this post, although he had the right to do so, since, according to the Iraqi Constitution, the Prime Minister is elected by the party with the largest representation in parliament. This was the "State of Law" block of parties headed by Nouri al-Maliki. The US position on this issue was dictated by the interests of global American policy in the region, which varied depending on the changing political situation.

AMERICANS IN IRAQ: WE WANTED THE BEST, BUT IT TURNED OUT...

After the invasion of Iraq by the US and its allies in 2003 and the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime, the US promoted the election of representatives of the Shiite community opposed to this regime, in particular Nuri al-Maliki, to the Iraqi government structures. He served as Prime Minister of Iraq for 8 years (2006-2014). At the same time, Americans were not bothered by the fact that, according to Western media, Nuri al-Maliki in the 1980s was a member of a radical Islamist Shiite group funded by Iran and carried out a terrorist attack against American soldiers in Beirut, which killed dozens of American soldiers.

This group at that time fought both against the regime of Saddam Hussein and against the United States, which supported Hussein during the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-1988. When Nouri al-Maliki began pursuing a policy of rapprochement with Shiite Iran, supporting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and developing relations with Russia, which was contrary to American interests, the United States changed the vector of its policy in Iraq. They began to seek common ground with Sunni, including radical, Islamist forces hostile to Iran, the Syrian leadership of Assad, as well as the Shiite Hezbollah movement in Lebanon. One of the most efficient forces operating in Iraq and Syria was the Islamic State.

After the start of the successful IS offensive in Iraq, its declaration of a" caliphate "and subsequent repeated requests for military assistance from the Iraqi government, as well as to demonstrate to world public opinion its readiness to fight" international terrorism", the United States launched a series of targeted airstrikes on IS positions in the fall of 2014. A contingent of several hundred military personnel was also sent to Iraq to strengthen the security of the US embassy and representative offices of American companies.

Meanwhile, in Iraq, after the forced resignation of Nouri al-Maliki in September 2014, as a result of sharp criticism of him from the parliamentary opposition and US pressure, a new Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi was appointed, who was supposed to form a new government within a month. However, the resignation of Nouri al-Maliki did not prevent him from enjoying influence among a part of the Shiite community and the political establishment,

moreover, to maintain control over the security forces loyal to him. This situation provoked a government crisis, which was largely resolved after Nouri al-Maliki officially declared his loyalty to the new Prime Minister.

At the same time, IS militants continued their offensive operations in the direction of the city of Kirkuk in the area of oil fields in Iraqi Kurdistan. However, here their offensive was stopped by the Kurdish armed groups "Peshmerga". In turn, the leading NATO countries, led by the United States, declared their support for the Kurds in their confrontation with the IS and began to supply military equipment and humanitarian aid to Iraqi Kurdistan.

THE "KURDISH QUESTION" IS STILL UNANSWERED

At the same time, the US Air Force has stepped up its strikes on IS positions in the area. In this regard, it should be noted that after the collapse of Saddam Hussein's regime, Iraqi Kurdistan gained broad autonomy within Iraq and de facto became an independent state entity. Its leadership announced its intention to hold a referendum on secession from Iraq and the official proclamation of an independent Kurdish state, which the Iraqi authorities oppose.

The desire for Kurdish independence is supported by the United States, the EU and Israel, which plan to turn a future independent Kurdish state into a significant pro-Western force in the region. Active military and political support for the confrontation between the Kurds and the IG from the leading NATO countries is due both to this factor and to the fact that the IG offensive threatens the oil-bearing region of Kirkuk and the city of Erbil, the capital of Kurdistan, where many Western companies have representative offices.

At the same time, the United States and its allies cannot ignore the position of NATO member Turkey, which also has a significant Kurdish community, on the Kurdish issue. Turkey is not interested in the military strengthening of the Kurds in Iraq and, moreover, in the creation of an independent Kurdish state here. Due to this factor, the United States and the EU are not going to significantly increase the supply of military equipment to Iraqi Kurdistan.

Nevertheless, after the significant military successes of the IS, as well as after the demonstrative execution of two American and English citizens captured in Syria and a French citizen captured in Algeria in September 2014, the US leadership, supported by its allies, announced the beginning of massive bombing of the IS with the subsequent goal of its complete destruction.

At the same time, a meeting of the leaders of the leading Western states was held in Paris on September 14, which was also attended by representatives of more than 30 countries, including Russia. The final resolution of the meeting confirmed the need to support the Iraqi leadership and step up efforts in the fight against the Islamic State, which, according to the participants of the meeting, "poses a threat not only to Iraq, but also to the Middle East region and the entire world community."¹⁴

During this period, the US Air Force conducted more than 170 strikes on IS positions in northern Iraq, as well as on a number of areas captured by Islamists 80 km from Baghdad. Nevertheless, according to a number of military experts, these bombings did not significantly weaken the military potential of the IG and, moreover, could not lead to its military defeat.

THE "COALITION" HAS BEEN CREATED. AND WHAT ARE THE RESULTS?

Despite the statements of the leaders of the United States and England about the creation of a coalition of more than 40 states to fight the IG and the "determined intention to destroy the terrorists from the IG", military measures were limited to a certain increase in the number of American military personnel to protect diplomatic missions and American missions in Iraq and air strikes on IG positions. that there will be no ground operation by the US army against ISIS.

The coalition includes the United States ' Arab allies: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Jordan. However, the United States does not intend to call on either Iran or Syria to join it, although it is obvious that these countries could make a significant contribution to the fight against this terrorist group. At the same time, the United States began bombing IS positions in Syria, and without asking permission from the Syrian authorities and without coordinating its actions with them. Moreover, the US military threatened to destroy Syrian air defense positions if they "try to interfere with the operations of the US Air Force."

As a result of the bombing, a certain number of IS militants were killed, and at the same time dozens were killed.

peaceful Syrian citizens. The United States also said that it intends to provide support, including by supplying weapons and training the " moderate Syrian opposition." We are talking about the so-called Free Syrian Army ( FSA), an armed Syrian group that aims to overthrow the leadership of Bashar al-Assad. In turn, Saudi Arabia and Turkey declared their readiness to provide their territory for the creation of training camps for the FSA. Thus, the actions of the United States confirm that the global goals of American policy in the Middle East have remained the same. Namely, the removal of the leadership of Bashar al-Assad, who is an ally of Iran, in Syria, bringing to power in Iraq forces hostile to Iran and Syria, and thereby their maximum weakening, along with the Hezbollah movement in Lebanon. The United States seems to continue to view Iran, despite some warming of US-Iranian relations, and its allies Syria and Hezbollah as forces that oppose US interests in the region and pose a threat to Israel, a strategic ally of the United States.

To implement these plans, the United States, as before, will try to use radical Islamists, including the Islamic State and its affiliated groups. Therefore, the United States, apparently, does not intend to destroy them. This is also confirmed by the results of the actions of the US-led coalition of states acting against the IS.

As a result, during the bombing of IS positions that lasted for more than a year - from September 2014 to the end of 2015-the coalition forces, according to some media reports, liberated only about 1% of the territory captured by IS, and killed several thousand militants. At the same time, dozens, if not hundreds, of civilians were killed, according to both foreign media and IS. Only after the successful offensive operations conducted by the Syrian government army with the support of the Russian Aerospace Forces (VKS) against ISIS since September 2015, the US-led coalition somewhat intensified its actions in Iraq to provide air and fire support to the Iraqi army and the Kurdish Peshmerga armed groups that launched an offensive on Mosul in April 2016. captured in 2014 by IS militants.

THE ENTIRE REGION IS UNDER THREAT

The terrorist expansion of the Islamic State can significantly destabilize the situation in the countries of the region. This primarily concerns Libya. In Egypt, extremist groups calling themselves the "Islamic State of the Sinai Peninsula"are carrying out terrorist activities in the Sinai Peninsula region15. The Egyptian army is working against them with the assistance of the local population, which has intensified attacks on Islamists, including on IS bases in Libya, after the execution of more than ²⁰ Coptic citizens here in early 2015 by IS militants Egypt.

Jordan also stepped up its Air Force operations against IS after the brutal execution (burning alive) of a Jordanian pilot captured by Islamists. At the same time, it is necessary to recognize that the Muslim public consciousness in Jordan, as well as to a certain extent in other Arab countries, is quite divided in relation to the IS. A significant part of it, including prominent Muslim figures around the world, condemns IS extremism and confirms that its terrorist actions have nothing to do with true Islam. Nevertheless, some Muslims recognize the creation of an Islamic state in accordance with Sharia law as legitimate and accuse the authorities of aggravating socio-economic problems and following what they consider to be the "anti-Islamic" policy of the West. At the same time, judging by the threats of Islamists to commit terrorist acts in Western countries, which was confirmed by the terrorist attacks in 2015-2016 in Paris and Brussels, where more than 130 and more than 30 people were killed, respectively, ISIL poses a serious threat to the spread of terrorism in the world.

At the same time, the doctrine of the Islamic State may continue to attract some Muslims. Moreover, the leaders of radical Islamism can enter into a tactical alliance with the West, as shown by the examples of W. bin Laden's alliance with the US special services in Afghanistan in the 1980s, the Libyan Islamist groups that received military assistance from NATO, who fought with the Gaddafi regime in 2011, and, finally, the IG, which enjoyed Western support, conducted military operations in Syria in 2011-2014. terrorist war against the leadership of Assad.

However, both the ideology and strategic goal of Islamism - the re - establishment of an "Islamic caliphate" through jihad (holy war) - will always be directed against the West. As for the specific one

In order to prevent the terrorist actions of radical Islamists, we need genuine political will, refusal to support any extremist groups and coordination of the efforts of all forces interested in this fight.

In this regard, the role of Russia, its actions to suppress the IS and support the Syrian government army in cooperation with countries such as Iran, Iraq, and all forces that are really fighting against radical Islamism is increasing. At the end of September 2015, in accordance with the official request of the Syrian government, the Russian Aerospace Forces launched missile and bomb attacks on the positions of the Islamic State militants in Syria. As a result, a number of command posts, armament depots, militant concentration positions and military equipment were destroyed. The Syrian government army has launched offensive operations to liberate the areas of Idlib, Homs, Hama, and Aleppo from IS militants. A significant success was the liberation of Palmyra by the Syrian army with the support of the Russian Aerospace Forces in March 2016, which allows the Syrian army to develop a further offensive in the direction of Syria. Deir al-Zor and Raqqa, the capitals of the so-called Islamic State.

For Russia, Syria is the front line of defense against radical Islamism, since it is obvious that in the event of a hypothetical Islamists coming to power in Syria, the next blow of the terrorist "jihad" will be directed, including against Russia.

The prospects for resolving the Syrian crisis are expected to be realized within the framework of the political process. A significant stage in its progress is the negotiations between representatives of the Syrian leadership and various forces of the Syrian opposition, the next round of which was held in April 2016. However, it is obvious that a political solution is impossible without suppressing radical Islamist groups, especially the Islamic State.

At the same time, the phenomenon of the "Islamic State" (IS) should be considered in two aspects - as a real military-political extremist structure and as an ideological doctrine. The real Islamic State was created by radical Islamist forces largely due to the voluntary or involuntary support of the United States and its allies, primarily Turkey and the monarchies of the Persian Gulf, who sought to eliminate the objectionable regime of Bashar al-Assad with the hands of radical Islamists. Nevertheless, with the political will of all actors fighting against IS, its military suppression seems to be quite feasible.

As for the Islamic state as an Islamist ideological doctrine, it is a kind of conceptual idea clothed in a religious form of building a just world order, where "Islamic social justice" and "Islamic values" will prevail, which can attract some Muslims. At the same time, the fight against this ideology only through classical Islam does not seem to be effective enough. Successful counteraction to it is possible by solving or at least mitigating the most acute problems existing in society, and creating a real social justice alternative to the "Islamic" one.

^{Hami Faris A.} 1 Heritage and Ideologies in Contemporary Arab Thought: Contrasting Views of Change and Development // Journal of Asian and African Studies. Leiden, 1986. Vol. 21, N 1 - 2. P. 91.

² Koran (translated by I. Y. Krachkovsky), Moscow, 1990, p. 78.

^{Hami Faris A.} 3 Op. cit. P. 92.

^{Dolgov B. V.} 4 Islamist Challenge and the Algerian Society, Moscow, Institute of Israel and Middle East Studies, Russian Academy of Sciences. 2004, с. 52. (Dolgov B.V. 2004. Islamistskiy vyzov i alzhirskoe obshchestvo. M.) (in Russian)

^{Mitchell R.} 5 The Society of the Muslim Brothers. L., 1969. P. 246.

⁶ Cit. by: Al-Almaf M., Botiveau V., Fregozi F. L'Algerie par ses islamistes. Editions KARTHALA. P., 1991. P. 88.

⁷ Al-Watan al-arabiy (Arab homeland) / / Al-Jazair, Algeria. 27.07.1990.

⁸ Audio message from Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, leader of the Islamic State, quoted on Euronews, 2.09.2014.

^{Thomson D.} 9 Les francais jihadistes. Les arenes. P., 2014.

^{Abramova I. O.} 10 Afrikanskaya migratsiya: opyt sistemnogo analiza [African Migration: Experience of System Analysis], Moscow, 2009, pp. 114-115. (Abramova I. O. 2009. Afrikanskaya migratsiya ... Moscow) (in Russian)

^{Kepel G.} 11 Quatre-vingt-treize. Gallimard. P., 2012. P. 53.

^{Fitpuni L. L., Abramova I. O.} 12 Aggressive non-state participants of geostrategic rivalry in "Islamic Africa" / / Asia and Africa Today. 2014. N 12. С. 8 - 15. (Fituni L.L., Abramova I.O. 2014. Agressivnye negosudarstveimye uchastniki... // Aziya i Afrika segodnya. N 12) (in Russian)

^{Fituni L. L.} 13 Middle East: technologies of Protest potential management / / Asia and Africa today. 2011. N 12. pp. 8-16. (Fituni L. L. 2011. Blizhniy Vostok: tekhnologii... // Aziya i Afrika segodnya. N 12) (in Russian)

¹⁴ Euronews TV channel, 15.09.2014.

¹⁵ For more information, see: Meshcherina K. V. "In the state of war": the fight against terrorism in Northern Sinai. 2015, N 12. (Meshcherina K.V. 2015. "V sostoyanii voiny": borba s terrorizmom v Severnom Sinae // Aziva i Afrika segodnya. N 12) (in Russian)

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