According to a report by the Centre on Religion & Geopolitics (CRG), a think tank organisation set up by the former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, there are allegedly 15-Syrian based jihadist groups with over 65,000 militants ready to take charge if Isis is defeated.
Groups such as Ahrar al-Sham, and Jabhat al-Nusra, an al-Qaeda associate, allegedly hold the same ideologies as Islamic State and pose a potential risk of carrying out terrorist attacks against western countries.
The CRG report alerts that military actions against Isis in Syria by the armed forces from countries such as Britain, could risk becoming a “strategic failure” by neglecting other jihadist groups where Isis' defeat will prove beneficial for them.
The report states, “The current focus on the military defeat of Isis does not consider the other groups in Syria [and worldwide] with exactly the same global ideology and ambitions. Our research has found 15 groups stand ready to succeed Isis... If only Isis is defeated, there is a high risk that dispersed Isis fighters and other Salafi-jihadist groups will expand their horizons and launch attacks outside of Syria. In a dangerous escalation, these groups could aim to compete for the spotlight- to ensure allegiance from the global fighters and financing that Isis currently attracts.”
