There is an important security element to the refugee crisis unfolding in Europe.

It’s not religious fervor that makes Islamic State such a formidable foe on the battlefield.

The recent kidnapping and murder of a Croatian foreign worker has propelled Egypt’s Sinai Province into the media spotlight. But this Islamic State franchise has been a growing threat for a long time, and unless the Egyptian army changes its tactics the situation will only get worse.

Islamic State is certainly different from many of the terrorist groups that preceded it. But is it actually a state?

The dynamic in the Middle East is changing. Recent events have pushed Turkey towards a more activist position against Islamic State (ISIS) and Kurdish forces, which is shaping the response of other regional players, and leading to new alliances that will impact the future of Syria, Iraq, and the wider region.

One must look beyond Islamic State for the real causes of radicalization in Tunisia. Only then will we have the proper tools to stomp out terrorism.

It is not the fear of Islamic State nor the desire to eliminate it that defines the strategies of the main players in the Middle East. Rather it is the fear of how the balance of power will shift after ISIS is eliminated.

Islamic State is taking advantage of Toureg and Toubou clashes in southern Libya as another UN-mediated attempt at national unity unravels.

If Mokhtar Belmokhtar is confirmed to have been killed by a US airstrike over the weekend, it would remove an obstacle keeping the al-Mourabitoun from pledging its allegiance to Islamic State.

The US policy to contain Islamic State’s advance in Iraq has failed. Now Washington must stand by and watch as Baghdad fails even harder.