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By claiming devastating attacks on French and Russian targets in recent days, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant has embraced what appears to be an irrational strategy: It has angered and provoked two military powers that had been reluctant to engage in an all-out war with the newly established caliphate in Iraq and Syria.

Vowing revenge, France has already responded with a flurry of airstrikes on Raqqa, the caliphate’s capital in Syria. And Moscow may intensify its air campaign if it concludes that the ISIL did, in fact, blow up a Russian airliner.

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tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or ISIL wants to lure the world's unbelievers to Syria for a final, Armageddon-like battle, analysts say Back to video

Expanding the conflict may seem like a self-destructive move. But for some analysts it is squarely in keeping with what the group advertises as its overriding, apocalyptic mission: to lure the world’s unbelievers into Syria for a final, Armageddon-like battle.

In the short term, ISIL is almost certainly betting that it can survive a counterattack. Whatever losses the group may suffer will be far outweighed by the propaganda value of its newly proven ability to infiltrate other countries and kill hundreds of civilians, according to counterterrorism analysts and U.S. officials.