Actually, they counquered quite a lot of terretories in Iraq and Syria. In fact, Iraqi army is afraid to fight them, they even abondoned Ambrams tank that was left for them by US army. Now that tank is in hands of ISIS terrorists. They executed a houndreds of Iraqi soldiers, so surely they can do such things to christian civilians.
I am not so sure about this.
There are numerous issues with what happened in Iraq. There are talks of traitors within the ranks, of commanders who failed to give orders. Further, many in the army didn't exactly know what they were up against (or what they were fighting to protect).
I think some of that has changed. The Iraqi military has rebounded and recovered some resolve. They are not at all where they should be - but they have avoided a complete collapse.
ISIS had the advantage of being something of an unknown element in the beginning. When even the Sunni population is beginning to resist the advancement and actions of ISIS - you know that the gains ISIS has enjoyed are going to be harder to earn. People know what they are about, now - and not just the "Islamic Caliphate" - but the random killings and disregard for established power structures.
Holding power within Iraq will be a bit more challenging for them than I think they are counting on.
While many in the U.S. have been quick to say that the Iraqi people did not learn from or take to heart the experience of freedom - and they do have a point - I think this is one of the learning lessons that will either solidify their will to be sovereign or destroy any possibility of an independent sovereign will.
In other words - the very act of allowing ISIS to advance is teaching them precisely why our lessons and training should have been taken to heart. They are learning exactly what they can lose if they don't figure it out.
Our president just needs to shut the hell up about "bipartisan" and "reaching across the aisle" - because he's not helping. If a group like ISIS coming through to throw them out of power and shoot motorists for fun does not force them to settle into a functionally cooperative relationship - then nothing will.
That, and not everything that happens requires government action. He really needs to stop leading them down the road to fascism and totalitarianism. The smartest thing they might be doing right now is ignoring him.
Anyway - when it comes to conquering the established nations... that is going to be a much more difficult fight. If every sovereign nation over there crumbled every time some warlord preached about forming a caliphate - then there would never be sovereign nations in the middle east. The fact is that the reality of agreeing to this 'caliphate' means many of the people who currently enjoy a position of power/influence would no longer have it (or have serious contest to it). That usually tends to rain upon the parade of those who speak of such large goals.
Taking on a country like Iran or Saudi Arabia is a much tougher cookie. Iran is struggling against the expansion of western influence - economics means ideas spread with the money - so an enriched Iran means a solid flow of ideas, few of which are conducive to Sharia Law as a whole.
I don't see the public over there welcoming ISIS with open arms. While there are some who will - the same can be said of just about anywhere. Reports are coming in that there are quite a few young Americans from muslim communities who are seeking to join in the establishment of a Caliphate. Because they are young and full of ambition without really having the wisdom to see what it is they are getting involved in.
The challenge will be for ISIS to actually appeal enough to the people for them to be able to destabilize other nations. And that will be hard, even in the Muslim regions of the world.
And it's simply not going to happen if they want to push as far north as the Balkans.
The Serbs and Bosnians were able to throw off Ottoman rule back in the days when they were merely peasants prohibited from having much of anything other than agriculture. While there are enough Muslims in those regions to potentially destabilize them - it's hard to tell exactly which side of the fence they will fall on. The collapse of Yugoslavia has necessarily caused populations to concentrate to some degree. When you suspect your neighbor might just try to cleanse you from existence - you tend to find new neighbors.
That means causing a destabilization is much harder - as people can draw a very clear line in the sand and say: "people on that side of the line are part of the Caliphate, and people on this side are not. Try to cross that line and we'll slaughter you."
There were numerous times the Turks tried to invade the Christian lands - and there were quite a few borders they were never successful at breaching. I don't think time has shrunk those borders - but has expanded them, instead. Lands that were once incapable of mounting organized resistance are now independent, sovereign lands that cannot simply be regarded as rural peasants.
That, and I'm starting to get friends over in that region of the globe - and if I have reason to believe The Caliphate is Coming to their region - I'll be there to teach them how to make it exceedingly difficult for the Caliphate to accomplish its goals and to stand beside them in helping them do so. They will just have to accept that I celebrate Christmas on the 25th of December (the Winter Solstice) - because I like my heretical protestant traditions. ... Actually - I really don't care. Any day is a good day to make lots of food and have lots of people over for various antics.
Actually - I'd have to do a bit more research on Eastern Orthodox Christianity to better understand what separates it from Catholicism (which is what Protestantism broke from...).
Anyway - the point is - while ISIS is certainly 'on the radar' - the fact that they are 'on the radar' mean they are going to be facing challenges that they have been spared, so far.