On November 13, 2015, Paris, France was hit with 3 devastating terrorist attacks. The attacks were a turning point for world leaders on the fight against ISIS. Shortly after, on July 14, 2016, a truck drove through a crowd of people in a city called Nice, France. From a political perspective, the attacks on Paris represented a message that ISIS was sending to the democratic governments all over the world. The events were described as, “an ‘act of war’ organised by the Islamic State (IS) militant group” (“What Happened on The Night” 2015 N.P.). Some may question why France is the target of the most recent attacks. The history behind France and the Middle East has been violent. According to Time, “The roots of the problem are complex” (Malsin, Jared 2015 N.P.).
The November attacks on Paris were executed “by gunmen and suicide bombers” and they “hit a concert hall, a major stadium, restaurants and bars, almost simultaneously” meaning the attacks were planned and executed by a team of people (“What Happened on The Night” 2015 N.P.). The simultaneous attacks “left 130 people dead and hundreds wounded, with more than 100 in critical condition” making this attack one of the worst on Paris since World War 2 (“What Happened on The Night” 2015 N.P.).
The July attack on Nice was also devastating to not only the people of France but people around the world. On July 14, 2016, a truck drove through a crowd of people at watching a fireworks display. In the attack “eighty-six people were killed, all but three of them at the time of the attack. The dead included 10 children and teenagers” making this day a nightmare for the citizens of Nice (“What We Know” 2016 N.P.). The attacks took place on “Bastille Day, the symbol of Liberty, because human rights are denied by fanatics and France is quite clearly their target” and that is why the attacks were so devastating (“Déclaration à La Suite” 2016 N.P.). The French president also said that they’re “going to strengthen and reinforce” their plan of action in Iraq and Syria “and continue to confront those who are attacking” in their own country (“Déclaration à La Suite” 2016 N.P.).
Political Science is a perspective focused on power and conflict. France is a major influential country, and the conflict between France and the Middle East is a struggle over power. Muslims in France also face a large amount of discrimination, as Time magazine reports, “Frances Prisons have become a large recruiting ground for extremists” (Malsin, Jared 2015 N.P.). The struggle between France and ISIS is a clear issue of international relations. International relations are, “A subfield of political science that studies the political relationships among nations” (Anderson et al. 2008 118). Since the attacks on Paris and Nice, Muslims have faced extensive discrimination. Like the U.S. after 9/11, France is outraged by the acts of terror that killed so many.
Syria, an authoritarian regime, is the main country where ISIS resides. An authoritarian regime, “relies on the principle of one strong dictator to unify a country under nationalist slogans, but, unlike fascism, usually relies on military, business, and church elites” (Anderson et al. 2008 478). Authoritarian governments use military intervention, and usually are based on the right side of the political perspective. This means that generally authoritarian governments don’t like change. Which also explains the intense war that is ongoing in Syria causing many Syrian refugees to relocate to safer countries. The war in Syria involves their government and ISIS trying to over throw that government. Any change of any sort upsets the government and to reverse this change they are willing to do anything. An authoritarian government is not afraid to use military action and violence to refrain from changes in their political, religious, and economic roles. Syria’s resistant ideologies explain why extremist groups like ISIS exist. They are used to this unchanging system of beliefs, so much that countries who let their citizen’s express whatever beliefs they want are seen as a threat to extreme groups like ISIS.
Unlike Syria, France is a republic making them very similar to the United States, another target of ISIS. This leads many to believe that ISIS is attacking democratic governments because they don’t have the same beliefs and values. Terrorist groups are believed to attack democracies because they offer religious freedoms that contradict their beliefs. ISIS stands for the Islamic state of Iraq and Syria, meaning that their only beliefs are in Islamic ideals.
Being apart of the United Nations, France had support from many nations including the United States. President Obama exclaimed that the attack was an, “’Outrageous attempt to terrorize innocent civilians’ (de Vries, Karl 2016 N.P.)President Obama also stated that these were attacks “on all of humanity and the universal values we share” (de Vries, Karl 2016 N.P.). The United States, also being a target for major terrorist attacks, is one of many countries that offered support for France.
In the case of international relations, Syria and Iraq haven’t been countries that others want to have relations with. Being home to the Islamic terror group ISIS, countries around the world have negative views of the general population of Iraq and Syria. Many people in the United States and France have very intense prejudices and stereotypes about the Muslim community as a whole and not just extremists.
In conclusion, the attacks on France this past year have had long term affects on Iraq and Syria from the political perspective. Their international relations with France are are diminishing as the terrorist group becomes larger. France and the United States are putting extensive pressure on ISIS using military forces to stop and prevent any further attacks. As this happens, Syrian refugees are fleeing the country to find safer environment to live in while ISIS is spreading its influence to countries like the U.S. and France. They recruit young, Muslim men who are passionate about radical Islam.