Because of ISIS’s newfound interest in sowing terror in the Arab world, governments such as Saudi Arabia may decide to shift focus, if only partially, from removing Assad in Syria to fighting domestic extremism. This could open the door to solving the problems of political repression, regional instability and radicalization through the implementation of fresh new ideas in the Arab world. We believe the solution lies in promoting greater political freedom, offering Arab governments reassurances and incentives to take such steps, and amplifying the voices of the Arab public to speak out against terror. Countering ISIS through technology developed by Arab youth and creating a reward structure for greater openness would serve the interest of longer-term stability in the Middle East.

Daniel Cohen is a research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Israel. Ari Heistein is the special assistant to the director of the Institute for National Security Studies in Israel.

Image: Praying in the New Mosque, Istanbul. Flickr/Brian Jeffery Beggerly