Frank Garcia

Mrs. Hensel
English III
13 November 2014
Differences Between ISIS & al-Qaeda
September 11, 2001, America changed forever. Nineteen militants associated with the
Islamic terrorist group, al-Qaeda, hijacked four U.S. airlines and hit the Pentagon, a field in
Pennsylvania, and the World Trade Center. Thirteen years later, al-Qaeda is still around, but a
new terrorist group has emerged, ISIS. Once part of al-Qaeda, now ISIS is infamous in the eyes
of America. ISIS and al-Qaeda are different, because ISIS appeals more to young people, each
has different funding, and one is more dangerous than the other.
Both terrorists groups need to be able to appeal to people so that they can get recruits and
grow in numbers. Even though that both need to appeal to individuals, ISIS does it better than alQaeda. ISIS glorifies violence in the images and videos it disseminates around the Web,
whereas al-Qaida's content is more restrained (Ryan). ISIS uses social media, such as Twitter,
but the main tool that they use to bring in recruits are inspirational videos and videos of violence,
such as beheading and other types of execution. While most people react with disgust to ISIS's
graphic videos, there are some who are inspired by itand that is exactly whom the group is
trying to reach (Ryan).
Both of these well-known terrorist groups need one thing to carry out all of their
diabolical plans: funding. If not for this, both of these terrorist groups would die out. ISIS and
al-Qaeda each have different methods for getting money or getting funded. Al-Qaeda core has
been traditionally reliant on donor funding (Wong). Another method that al-Qaeda uses to get

money is by selling drugs. Al-Qaeda makes over a million dollars by selling illegal drugs. AlQaeda takes the drugs, [such as heroin and hashish], as payment and uses them to buy arms
(Drug Money Sustains Al Qaeda). Other ways that al-Qaeda gets money is by forcing people to
pay to go through a trading route. Al-Qaedas allies regulate smuggling routes out of
Afghanistan into Iran, Pakistan, Turkmenistan and other countries, essentially placing a tax on
each shipment to let it pass (Drug Money Sustains Al Qaeda). ISIS, on the other hand, has their
own methods to getting money.
ISIS has many ways of getting money illegally. [Unlike al-Qaeda], ISIS is more reliant
on illicit activities such as selling oil on the black market. (Wong). ISIS forces people to pay
them is by threats. Other financing reportedly comes as
a result of threats made to local officials and businesses (How Do Islamic State Militants
Finance Their Operations). ISIS will do anything to get money, they will manipulate, cheat, and
kill people to get what they want. Observers say some money comes from kidnapping, human
trafficking, and the secret movement of goods across borders (How Do Islamic State Militants
Finance Their Operations).
Many people ask which of these terrorist groups is more dangerous. Each has their own
qualities that makes that terrorist group dangerous in the eyes of the United States. In some
cases, people may say that ISIS is more dangerous than al-Qaeda, because ISIS has gained
international attention by beheading prisoners and enemies, and then posting pictures of the
violence on social media (Wong). Another way that ISIS can be more deadly than ISIS is there
effectiveness and their ability to inspire more of todays youth to join their cause. ISIS has used
extreme violence and brutality to attract attention and more followers, which has proven to be
dangerous and very effective (Wong). In other cases, people may say that al-Qaeda is more

dangerous than ISIS. The main reason for this is because of what al-Qaeda has already done.
Since the 9/11 attack, al Qaeda has carried out plots several times over the last five years
against the U.S., and the group has the capability to do more (Wong). For now it is
undetermined which of these two terrorist groups is more dangerous of the other.
ISIS and al-Qaeda are different, because ISIS appeals more to young people, each has
different funding, and one is more dangerous than the other. ISIS convinces young people to join
the terrorist group using social media and inspirational recruitment video. ISIS and al-Qaeda are
also different because they get their money from different sources. It is undecided who is more
dangerous of these two terrorist group.

Work Cited
"Drug Money Sustains Al Qaeda." Washington Times. The Washington Times, 29 Dec. 2003.
Web. 13 Nov. 2014.
"How Do Islamic State Militants Finance Their Operations?" VOA. VOA News, 19 Oct. 2014.
Web. 13 Nov. 2014.
Ryan, Laura. "Al-Qaida and ISIS Use Twitter Differently. Here's How and Why.
www.nationaljournal.com. National Journal Group Inc., 9 Oct. 2014. Web. 13 Nov. 2014.
Wong, Kristina. "Five Ways ISIS, Al Qaeda Differ." TheHill.com. Capitol Hill Publishing Corp,
20 Sept. 2014. Web. 25 Sept. 2014.