Does one defeat ISIS by bombing ISIS, or does one attack ISIS by doing something about the Syria question? Because it is quite clear that Assad and ISIS both have some kind of cooperation agreement, they do not attack each other in great force. They both survive together. They would fail together as well, in my view.

Journalist Michael Griffin provides a comprehensive background on the conditions in the Middle East that lead to the rise of the Islamic State - from the organization's multiple incarnations as it navigated the shifting realities of post-invasion Iraq, to the ways it exploited sectarian, tribal and geopolitical divisions within the region - and explains why the US can't bomb or arm its way to stability in the Middle East.

Michael is author of Islamic State: Rewriting History from Pluto Press.