Syria and Iraq are spiraling into total chaos and appear headed toward a Somalia-style failed state run by warlords and a haven for extremist terrorist groups. The deep fear, as expressed by US President Barack Obama June 22, is that the militants that have seized territories in Iraq and Syria, if not confronted, will grow in power. In such an eventuality, logic suggests that the menace may spill over into other countries, not unlike the way Syria’s unrest spread into Iraq, destabilizing the whole region.

Another major threat that may emerge from the recent developments is that of the volatile divide between Shiites and Sunnis in Iraq being exploited by terrorists and leading to an all-out sectarian war. The emergence of this scenario would probably lead to Iraq’s localized conflict becoming a regional war, dragging in major actors outside Iraq, from states to militia groups.

Obama rejected the idea of sending American troops to Iraq and proposed the employment of a “more targeted strategy” “to partner and train local law enforcement and military to do their jobs as well.” In reality, that is what the United States has been doing for the last 10 years at a cost of billions of dollars. So far, this investment and efforts have culminated in Iraqi military forces and the police abandoning Mosul, yielding to the militants that overran Iraq's second-largest city and others in Anbar province.

It is an open secret that the Islamic State group (formerly known as the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham) receives support and financing from individuals in some Arab states in the Persian Gulf.