In launching a flurry of devastating attacks in the skies above Egypt’s Sinai and in Beirut and Paris, the self-described Islamic State appears to have embarked upon a new strategy to lash out against its enemies. But this strategy carries risks: The jihadists have picked a fight against an array of powerful adversaries that could threaten the durability of their jealously-protected 18-month-old “caliphate” cutting across a swathe of Syria and Iraq. IS swiftly declared responsibility for the bombing of a Russian airliner, twin suicide attacks in southern Beirut, and a shooting rampage in Paris. In all, nearly 400 people were killed and 600 others wounded in under two weeks. The attacks...
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