Irishbeekeeper

so who is buying the oil?
Turkey?

shiva

http://www.ibtimes.com/isis-oil-revenue-islamic-state-makes-money-selling-gas-bashar-assad-new-bbc2-1892370

http://english.alarabiya.net/en/perspective/analysis/2014/08/28/Experts-ISIS-makes-up-to-3-million-daily-in-oil-sales.html

To be fair they are probably making less per day from oil now but probably a lot more from captured territories

UKCityGent

ISIS are probably the richest terriorist group with VERY deep pockets. With the money gained from oil and ransom and the looting Mosul and its central bank the group is estimated to have $2b+.

In fact now IS is more of a donor than a charity case.

Oil smuggling is an old tradition in Iraq - the gangs and routes are well used - crude shipped thru Jordan to Iran, Syria, Kurdistan and out to open markets including Turkey and a few other countires. The oil is usually discounted heavily (upt0 75%!!).

BritInParis

ISIS is also taxing the people in the territory it controls.

scot47

Taxing people who are producing what ? When was the last time you bought something labelled "Made in the Islamic State of Sham and the Levant" ?

BritInParis

Goods and services, same as elsewhere. Christians are also being charged a protection tax unless they convert to Islam.

How ISIS Is Using Taxes To Build A Terrorist State - Forbes

The Isis economy: Meet the new boss - FT.com

Iraqi Christians flee after Isis issue Mosul ultimatum - BBC News

Gordon Barlow

As to the question of who is financing ISIS... If the alternative media is correct in stating that the US State Dept (CIA) kick-started the whole ISIS phenomenon, then presumably the US is still financing it. Why would the financing stop? The US suppliers of equipment and services certainly wouldn't want it to stop.

Related question: who sold ISIS all those Toyotas we see in the media? Also: which offshore tax-haven was used to hide the sellers' tracks?

Yoohoo

What makes you think those Toyotas were paid for by ISIS? What's to stop them appropriating anything and everything in its path? I can't imagine them asking permission to use anything....

Gordon Barlow

They may indeed have stolen them - or maybe someone left them around the place unlocked... They seemed pretty new in the pictures I saw of them. And I never suggested they were paid for by ISIS. Gosh, no. I really don't think ISIS needs to buy its own cars, just yet. Not unless its backers have suddenly overspent their budgets on other things. And anyway, these were custom-built for the purpose.

<<<snip>>>

They’re extremely well built, Toyotas, and ideal for conversion to weapons of mobility in war zones. The ISIS ones look to have been modified according to US “Special Forces” specs, with speedy and heavy-duty off-road capabilities – and machine-gun mountings. Not the kind of vehicles evil revolutionaries could have bought in their local souk.

Millhouse

Which is partly the chink in its business model. Apparently, those that are paying taxes are actually requesting some services now. ISIS isn't set up for this kind of governance just yet...

norsk

How would we survive without conspiracy theorists...?

shiva

Here's a question.

Ground war against daesh. Yes or no? Avoidable or inevitable?

Your answers on a postcard please

shiva

Bollocks. Bushanbs are built like tanks as standard, "special forces specs" really?

As for buying them, yup they are the single most popular vehicle for moving shit around between Casablanca and Muscat. And yes they do sell them in souqs and back yards and in car parks and yes that includes brand spanking new ones.

I've personally seen them being loaded onto dhows in Dubai for export to God knows where still wrapped in the Toyota factory plastic.

The ONLY modification these things need to be a war vehicles is the addition of men or children with guns.

If you want to make a gun platform a simple steel mount that any shitty garage or workshop in the world can weld is all you need to add.

There is zero need for a conspiracy here and in fact I rather suspect especially given the track record that U.S. or UK military spec would involve lowering the quality and not improving it.

norsk

Inevitable. The question is who will participate.

UKCityGent

I dont think there will be a full scale deployment - there is no benefits currently. I think as IS gains more foothold in the country and starts to expand into the region (covertly) then there maybe a GCC response (obviously with the required backing of the US and NATO). Will be interesting to see the response of Iran and the (possible) removal of santations.

I think the US and NATO are pretty tired of the wars that they have pushed themselves into without achieving anything ..