Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
33rd Annual Conference
“Orbis Unum"
Security Council: ISIS
Hi, I’m Drew Calof and I am the head chair for this committee. I have been in MUN for four
years now and I am currently the Middle Secretariat of Specialized Committees here at Mission
Viejo. I am a junior here at Mission. I have been in numerous conferences and have won almost
as many awards. Outside of MUN, I am involved in Drama, Choir, and more clubs than I can
count here at Mission. Outside of high school, I am a second-year intern at the Dana Point
Ocean Institute and I also enjoy singing and listening to classical music. I am excited to chair for
this committee and I’m looking forward to hearing the solutions you will conceive and apply! If
you have any questions, feel free to email me at [email protected].
As per the UN Charter, the Security Council’s principal mission is to ensure
international security and peace. Each and every Member State must comply with
all official Security Council Decisions. The Council is the body that decides how
to actually respond to any threat or aggressive act committed by a state or entity.
The Security Council charges involved parties with peacefully discussing and
settling conflicts via nonthreatening methods and it has the ability to suggest
terms for the end of the conflict. The Security Council even has the option to
impose sanctions or call forth peacekeeping troops to quell belligerent areas.
I.
Background:
ISIS’s roots trace back to an organization called Jama’at al-Tahwid wal-Jihad that was
founded by Abu Mus’ab al-Zarqawi in 2004 Iraq. After throwing his lot in with Al Qaeda, alZarqawi changed the official title of his organization to Tanzim al Qaeda fi Bilad al-Rafidayn,
which came to be known as Al Qaeda in Iraq. After Al-Zarqawi and his successors were all
killed in 2010, the line in line was Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Al-Qaeda in Iraq began to branch off
from Al Qaeda at this point, involving the organization in several more conflicts ranging from
the Syrian Civil War to the rebellion against the Iraqi regime. Al Qaeda in Iraq combined with a
sister organization called Jabhat al-Nusra in 2013. The newly formed organization, now
operating under the name of Al Qaeda in Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), began to separate its actions
from that of Al Qaeda, taking military control of Anbar and Ninawa Provinces in Iraq. As the
Syrian Civil War raged on, ISIS began to move and operate independently of Al Qaeda, taking
control of Iraq’s Anbar and Ninawa Provinces. In June 2013, ISIS officiated its independence
from Al Qaeda, renaming itself the Islamic State and declaring its end goal of a Caliphate. This
newly formed Islamic State quickly drew members from numerous Al Qaeda-affiliated
organizations in North Africa, Lebanon, and Syria. On June 10, 2014, ISIS gained international
attention when it asserted military control over Iraq’s most populous city, Mosul. From then on,
city after city has fallen to the expansionist goals of the Islamic State. Rumors that Baghdadi
was killed in a 2014 US drone strike were widespread, but never corroborated enough for
credibility. More recently, however, the crash of a Russian passenger plane over Egypt has been
accredited to ISIS bombings, making it a multi-regionally active group. Additionally, the
November 12 Beirut Bombing which claimed 43 lives as well as the Parisian Massacre just two
days later, which left 153 people dead at the most recent estimates, have both been claimed by
ISIS as their orchestrations.
Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
33rd Annual Conference
“Orbis Unum"
II.
United Nations Involvement:
A plethora of UN committees are involved with dealing with ISIS’s actions and fallout.
These committees include the UN Security Council, tasked with stopping ISIS’s future actions,
UNHRC, meant to help the civilians affected by ISIS’s rampant violence, and UNICEF,
specifically targeting the countless orphans left behind as ISIS tears through more cities. One of
the most recent resolution passed by the UN Security Council, labeled Resolution 2170,
officially targeted particular facets of ISIS operations, officially placing several names on the UN
terrorist sanctions list, recommending stronger border control for to prevent foreign aid to reach
the belligerent Islamic State. Additionally, Res.2170 enumerated the many actions taken by ISIS
that were officially labeled as Crimes Against Humanity and recommended that ISIS fighters
should be tried as such.
III.
Possible Solutions:
As ISIS is an unofficial state, the resolving of its belligerence will require creative and
unconventional solutions. Air strikes, as shown by the US and Russia, have had very limited
success, with the added problem of civilian casualties. Eliminating ISIS’s revenue streams has
also had limited success, as ISIS has the benefit of near-self-sufficiency as an independent state.
While it may not deal directly with stopping ISIS, a renewed focus on aiding those affected by
ISIS’s incursion would help greatly toward mitigating ISIS’s damage to the conquered regions.
With more and more cities being taken over by ISIS fighters, protective measures should
probably be taken into account for the purpose of halting future progression. Additionally, the
issue of refugees and IDPs must be considered, seeing as there are currently more than 10,000
refugees from Syria and Jordan alone. These are all issues that must be considered when dealing
with and mitigating the damages caused by the actions of ISIS.
IV.
Bloc Positions:
Western: Since its rapid rise to global recognition, western powers have been reticent to interfere
with ISIS’s actions. Since the organization began to take over major cities and regions, however,
western powers have begun to take more aggressive action.
African: Africa, being not only in close proximity to ISIS but dealing with its own group of
terroristic factions, has often been rather outspoken against ISIS. The most recent expansion
movements have many African countries scrambling to fight back.
Asian: The general Asian policy toward ISIS has been relatively passive, with the vast distance
separating these countries from the issues themselves. However, now that ISIS is starting to
expand, many Asian powers have come out definitely advocating for an end to ISIS’s activities.
Latin: Latin states generally are against ISIS, but their physical separation from the problem
makes their policies somewhat unspecialized. However, the major part of their policy all
revolves around the humanitarian crisis currently ongoing.
Middle Eastern: All of the Middle Eastern countries which don’t inherently support ISIS are
intensely fearful that ISIS will move on to their region, taking power and lives along the way.
Mission Viejo High School Model United Nations
33rd Annual Conference
“Orbis Unum"
As a result, Middle Eastern states are very much willing to do anything to eliminate the threat of
an ISIS takeover.
V.
Guiding Questions:
1) How could ISIS be stopped effectively while keeping civilian casualties to a minimum?
2) What is the first priority of the situation: preventing future takeovers or providing aid and
help to the last city to experience a takeover by ISIS?
3) If economic sanctions and embargoes have had a negligible effect at best, what can be
done to hinder ISIS?
4) If boots-on-the-ground military action is likely to incite responsive violence, how can
such rampant violence be mitigated?
5) How can future regions prepare for such a takeover by ISIS?What can be expected from
ISIS in the near future?
VI.
Works Cited:
Rabil, Robert G. "The ISIS Chronicles: A History." The National Interest. N.p., 27 July 2014.
Web. 07 Nov. 2015. <http://nationalinterest.org/feature/the-isis-chronicles-history10895?page=2>.
"Security Council Adopts Resolution 2170 (2014) Condemning Gross, Widespread Abuse of
Human Rights by Extremist Groups in Iraq, Syria | Meetings Coverage and Press Releases." UN
News Center. UN, 15 Aug. 2014. Web. 07 Nov. 2015.
<http://www.un.org/press/en/2014/sc11520.doc.htm>.
Boyle, Darren. "ISIS 'shot Down' Russian Sinai Plane That Crashed and Killed All 224
Passengers." Daily Mail. N.p., 31 Oct. 2015. Web. 6 Nov. 2105.
<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3297871/Russian-passenger-plane-220-tourists-boardmissing-Egypt-Fears-aircraft-crashed-Sinai-desert.html>.
"Middle East - UN Calls for International Action after Attacks on Iraqi Minorities." France 24.
N.p., 07 Aug. 2014. Web. 07 Nov. 2015. <http://www.france24.com/en/20140808-un-securtitycouncil-calls-action-Iraq-Isis-attacks/>.