One of the main reasons comes down to the differences between ISIS and Al-Qaida. Of these differences, the biggest one comes from their different ideas of who truly follows “Allah”. Al-Qaida killed those who didn’t believe in “Allah”, especially Christians. However, ISIS only spares specific Muslims, the ones they consider the purest of the religion (Wood). Because of this, finding a place where ISIS has a base that does not also contain civilian hostages proves a difficult task. They also had very different attack schemes, with Al-Qaida planning large scale attacks on a more infrequent basis. ISIS, on the other hand, conducts many small scale attacks and shootings (Stern). Recruits plan these attacks to keep people in constant terror, making them feel they could become one of the victims by simply going to school or to the grocery store.
ISIS also has a technological advantage. Some of their most horrifying acts have been published and shared because of social media. People all around the world found out about the killing of James Foley (an American journalist) through a video posted on YouTube. They also recruit through social media. Young people are exposed to these ideas without their true light, sometimes causing these ignorant people to join ISIS. Officials in government do not pay enough attention to this side of things, using outdated methods to try and combat terrorism instead of using technology