Following the Islamic State’s announcement of its execution of the Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh, I assessed the latest developments with BBC Coventry on Wednesday morning.
The take-away point: the burning of al-Kasasbeh points to the Islamic State’s attempt to project its strengths in Syria and Iraq — but it also points to their concerns over their weaknesses.
Listen to discussion from 24:27
If you really are in a strong position militarily, if you are really advancing, if you really don’t fear your enemies that much, you don’t have to go over the top with the burning and beheading of hostages.
What has not been picked is the timing of this. The Islamic State suffered a major defeat last week with the failure to capture the Kurdish city of Kobane in northern Syria. They lost — and they lost a lot of fighters.
In some ways, they are trying to sweep away that news.
There is also discussion of whether the video will backfire in the Islamic State’s recruitment of new fighters.
And there is the question, “Will this change anything in the Middle East?”
If you are going to defeat the Islamic State, you have to have a plan for the long haul. And there is no evidence of a strategy for this yet.
