Publication

This commentary argues that ISIS’ 13 November 2015 attacks in Paris may well represent the intensification and refinement of its indirect strategy – i.e., the bypassing of Western military might and striking directly at the soft underbelly of allied capitals. The point of the strategy is to raise the costs of involvement in Syria and Iraq by relying on trained attackers, claiming direct responsibility soon after an assault occurs, and increasing the number of available sleeper cells in Europe.