ISIL Forces are Growing by Thousands

6,0000 new fighters in Syria, or just past the "Holy Shit That's a Lot" mark

The Islamic State group has an army of more than 50,000 fighters in Syria, and recruited 6,000 people in the last month, a monitoring group has said.

Rami Abdel Rahman, the director of the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said on Tuesday that the group's recruitment push was gathering pace every month.

"July saw the largest recruitment since the group appeared in Syria in 2013, with more than 6,000 new fighters," he said.

"The number of IS fighters has passed 50,000 in Syria, including 20,000 non-Syrians," he said.

Comments

[Jesus H. Christ]

I have no context for these numbers. I don't know if that's a lot, or a middling amount, or what?

So, according to Wikipedia, the initial invasion of Iraq included the following Coalition forces:

"Four countries participated with troops during the initial invasion phase, which lasted from 19 March to 9 April 2003. These were the United States (148,000), United Kingdom (45,000)..."

Whereas the Iraqi forces:
"The number of personnel in the Iraqi military prior to the war was uncertain, but it was believed to have been poorly equipped.[117][118][119] The International Institute for Strategic Studies estimated the Iraqi armed forces to number 538,000 (Iraqi Army 375,000, Iraqi Navy 2,000, Iraqi Air Force 20,000 and air defense 17,000), the paramilitary Fedayeen Saddam 44,000, Republican Guard 80,000 and reserves 650,000.[120]

Another estimate numbers the Army and Republican Guard at between 280,000 to 350,000 and 50,000 to 80,000, respectively,[121] and the paramilitary between 20,000 and 40,000.[122] There were an estimated thirteen infantry divisions, ten mechanized and armored divisions, as well as some special forces units. The Iraqi Air Force and Navy played a negligible role in the conflict."

So these ISIL folks don't even come close to a tick on a dog's ass in comparison to the Iraqi forces at the onset of the invasion.

[Antilles]

Can't we send in a team of Special Forces to exterminate these animals? Kill them all, kill their wives and kill their children so they don't pass on their defective genes. I'm normally not this bloodthirsty, but this death cult doesn't deserve to live! They wouldn't hesitate to slaughter us and the people we love if they had the chance, so we shouldn't hold back when it comes to wiping them out.

[Will4Freedom]

I understand what you're saying. I'm not a violent person either.

If I find a spider in my house, I bring him outside. But if an ant nest bores it's way in... out comes the RAID!

I'd like to live in peace with all people, but there seems to be a group of beings out there that wants me dead for no other reason than I don't worship their idea of a deity.

What can we do?

[TimothyZ]

The longstanding battle - the one people merely forgot about - is one over religion and philosophy. What are our highest values? How to live the good life?

Since pursuit of loftier questions have been suspended in the west, there is, for us now, the offer of a coherent, far simpler narrative and view of human existence.

The issue of the totality has been abandoned in the west. Soon we will find the question perennial.

[Johnimo]

Recruiting? Is that what you call it when you threaten people with extermination and tell them, "You can fight with us or we'll kill your immediate family and all of your relatives."?