Has Snowden Done the Islamic State a Favor? The Caliphate Makes Use of the Data He Disclosed

The shared authority within the Islamic State means that if the leader is killed, his people will manage without him. At the moment they are learning from al-Qaida’s mistakes and causing confusion among Western analysts.

Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the Islamic State’s leader, referred to by his followers as Caliph Ibrahim, has always been happy to share power. The autonomy he gives to local leaders seems to be one of advantages of his self-appointed caliphate, established last year in eastern Syria and western Iraq. His men can adapt to changing circumstances because they are allowed to make their own decisions.

The Caliph Chooses the Right People

Now Baghdadi will delegate even more, according to The New York Times, which claims to source information from American and Iraqi intelligence forces. Baghdadi will give more power to his advisers from the Shura Council, which assembles high figures such as ministers of war, finance or religion.

The caliph can sleep soundly, since he chooses his people wisely. His most devoted followers are either former al-Qaida members from Iraq, who have been trained in planting bombs against American Marines, or former officers of Saddam Hussein, highly specialized in security, intelligence and organizational matters. The leading group is clearly divided according to the country of origin – the highest positions belong almost solely to Iraqis, whereas Tunisians and Saudis seem to be mainly religious experts.

They Learn From Others’ Mistakes

Baghdadi might be trusting, but he is also sensible. The caliphate’s deepest secrets are hidden from lower rank leaders and their soldiers, so they can’t betray them when captured by enemies.

Despite this, Americans know a lot about the latest financial transactions, recruitment methods and security measures of the Islamic State group. This is because the U.S. managed to capture a big bundle of the caliphate’s documents last May in eastern Syria. As described by The New York Times, the documentation shows that Caliph Ibrahim’s followers learn from mistakes, especially the mistakes of others. According to a diplomat quoted in The New York Times, the loss of al-Qaida leaders during airstrikes on the Arabian Peninsula paralyzed the entire organization, and this is why the caliph delegates increasing authority to local leaders, including lower rank leaders. The result of this is that if he is killed, his death will not affect ongoing operations.

Snowden’s Disservice to Intelligence Agencies

According to intelligence sources, the Islamic State group’s experts remain up to date and follow the news. They carefully studied documentation stolen two years ago by Edward Snowden, a former National Security Agency system administrator. Snowden revealed that U.S. intelligence conducts mass surveillance on American citizens and intercepts Internet data, such as emails and Internet chats. The terrorists drew their own conclusions from this and now avoid communicating through the Internet, opting for couriers or encrypted channels. This is a serious hindrance for the work of Western intelligence.

Do We All Listen to the Caliphate’s Propaganda?

Although Americans know a lot about the caliphate, they admit they don’t know enough. They still have little idea as to how radical leaders get through to more and more African and Asian groups that vow loyalty to the caliphate. It is not exactly clear, either, how powerful Baghdadi is, as even Western experts argue over whether he really is in charge of the entire Islamic State group or whether he is purely a religious leader, while the actual authority lays in the hands of Saddam’s formidable former officers.

However, one thing is incontrovertible: Whoever Caliph Ibrahim’s people are, they are experts in public relations. They have precise control over all information about the caliphate, which means that most of what we know is the caliphate’s own propaganda.