'Islamic State cannot be defeated by military action alone'

The UK Government must not give into rhetoric that Islamic State can be ‘simply bombed out of existence’, church leaders, including Lynn Green, said this week.

As Britain prepares to recall Parliament this Friday to approve air strikes against Islamic State, the leaders said that military intervention should only be part of a broad political and economic strategy which must have the support of countries in the region. However, they are not certain that ‘the most crucial elements of that strategy are in place’.

The statement was signed by Baptists Together General Secretary Mrs Green alongside Ken Howcroft, President of the Methodist Conference, and Gill Dascombe, Vice-President of the Methodist Conference.

They stressed that military action could help to protect persecuted minorities and prevent IS from expanding its control in Iraq.

However, it carries “huge risks”. Establishing a broad strategy supported by the region is “crucial”, and while the leaders recognise the Government’s attempts to involve Iran, there are a number of “unanswered questions that must urgently be addressed”.

‘For example, what is the level of commitment among countries in the region to take steps to prevent the funding of violent extremism - not only in Iraq and Syria but more broadly?’

In addition, countering extremist violence in Iraq requires that ‘Iraqis effectively address the underlying grievances that provided support for the rise of IS. The situation in Syria is more chaotic and the effectiveness of external military intervention less certain’.

The statement also called on the Government to extend further support to refugees from both Iraq and Syria, noting that only a handful of Syrians of so far been resettled in the UK.

The leaders pledged to pray that the leaders in government ‘who grapple with seemingly impossible situations’ will be guided by God’s wisdom and peace.

The statement was accompanied by a briefing document from the Joint Public Issues team examining issues surrounding military intervention in Iraq and Syria.

The document stated that ‘we do not deny that there are circumstances in which our nation may be called upon to support military intervention to bring about justice and security’. A case for military intervention could be made as ‘we can have very little confidence that non-military measures on their own will even degrade, let alone defeat IS’.

However, without guarantees of regional support for a comprehensive strategy in both countries, ‘there is likelihood that military intervention now, including the provision of arms to militia forces, will add to the increasing cycle of violence that has been a notable feature of the past few years.’

The document outlined three potential action points for church members:

• Stress the importance of UN sponsored human rights monitoring in Iraq and Syria
• Urge that refugees and displaced are adequately protected
• Be vocal concerning the threat to historic Christian communities across the Middle East and seek further alliances with Muslim partners to counter intolerance and extremism.

Prayer resources have also been shared.
 
Earlier this month President Obama announced airstrikes against IS, which was followed by an announcement on 23 September that a coalition of the US Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar carried out airstrikes against IS in Syria.  

On Friday (26 September) MPs backed air strikes against Islamic State.