VOL: Christians are called on to pray for their enemies, but the state has an obligation to protect its citizens. Should Christians call for the total destruction of the Islamic State even if it means carpet bombing cities in Iraq and Syria where the Islamic State primarily hides?

SOOKHDEO: I believe it is right that the Islamic State be destroyed completely, but it cannot be destroyed by air power alone. It must include the deployment of ground troops. I would be opposed to carpet bombing of cities, but there should be a strategic use of air power and ground troops acting together.

VOL: Can you ever see a time when the Islamic State would be at peace with the West? The Afghani government seems to have made some accommodation with the Taliban, but is that the same thing?

SOOKHDEO: I do not believe it is possible for Islamic State to be at peace with the West. The reason is that the ideology and theology of Islamic State wants the destruction of Christianity and the West, which they believe are interchangeable. The difficulty is that the Turkish intelligence minister has called for an Islamic state consulate to be set up in Turkey and for the West to reappraise their relationship with IS.

VOL: Sharia Law equals death by a thousand cuts. The horrifying reality is that Islam all too often practices what it preaches. Unknown thousands of murdered Christians across Africa and the Middle East testify to that plain truth. Do you agree with this statement?

SOOKHDEO: There are different interpretations of Islam, including a peaceful and peaceable Islam where many Muslims do not want to kill or reject the use of violence. But there are other interpretations of Islam which use violence as a means to an end. Unfortunately both interpretations are valid.

VOL: Al Qaeda seems silent in the face of ISIS aggression. What is going on there, do you think?

SOOKHDEO: The Islamic State has virtually stolen Al Qaeda's clothing. AL Qaeda was effectively fragmenting without real leadership and had lost its way. IS has built on Al Qaeda and has come out with a stronger and more coherent approach. Its narrative is more persuasive and its theology and ideological foundations are much clearer and their objectives are realizable, which fits in Islamic claims like the caliphate. They are also able to use social media and build on the susceptibilities of Muslims worldwide.

VOL: How do you evaluate and rate the immigration policies of Western nations in light of millions fleeing Syria and other Middle Eastern countries?

SOOKHDEO: The present position of Germany is potentially disastrous. To allow in 1.5 million principally Muslims by the end of this year without proper security checks defies belief.

VOL: Global South Primates were recently uninvited to Tunisia for a major conference because of the threat of Islamic State and the attempted murder of a government official. Was this the right response do you think?

SOOKHDEO: I was in Singapore at the time. I advised them not to do it. I recommended that the risk was too great.

VOL: It is said that Christianity will probably be wiped out in the Middle East within five years, certainly in Iraq. Do you think that is the case?

SOOKHDEO: I think we need to separate out the different contexts.

In Iraq over 200,000 Christians are in northern Iraq in the Kurdish regional authority. It is difficult to see their future. Many want to leave but no one will accept them. Secondly, Syria. Many Christians are fleeing into Turkey and Lebanon depending on whether President Assad can hold the coastal regions of Syria and the Christian areas as well as Damascus. Then Christianity will survive in those areas. Also there are many Christians in the Kurdish part of Syria. I believe that some will stay and not go. Thirdly the positon of Lebanon. The car bomb a few days ago has caused great concern over the future of Lebanon as a confessional state. While it is still strong, it is now being questioned. The possibility of a destabilized Lebanon is that some Christians may decide to leave. Christianity remains very strong and rooted in Lebanon, and it is difficult to see large numbers of Christians leaving.

In Egypt there are over 10 million Christians, and at this time the government is very favorable to them. However if there was a major armed conflict this could affect them with the elite and the wealthy leaving the country with many of the poor Christians having to stay behind.

In Jordan the king and the royal family is very sympathetic to the Christian family, and unless there was a massive disaster like IS gaining leverage, the Christians feel safe in a stable environment.

VOL: Are we beginning to see the 'clash of civilizations' as one historian put it, or is this just a brief skirmish between competing tribal groups?

SOOKHDEO: Some years ago Samuel Huntington wrote about the clash of civilizations and was dismissed. It is now recognized that the struggle is essentially an ideological struggle. It is a theological battle field. Civilization is founded on values and beliefs. I believe this clash is currently taking place between two opposites.

VOL: The desire of IS is a caliphate across Europe. Do you think that is possible if the West does not step up into the plate and destroy them?

SOOKHDEO: Their desire is a resurrection of the old caliphate, what existed in the Ottoman period. Also add to that Spain with Andalusia which they want to get back. So far they have not included Europe as part of their caliphate. However, their eschatological vision is that of a global caliphate ultimately. I do not believe it is realistic or possible but a pie in the sky dream.

VOL: Recently the Patriarch of Antioch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, said that Islam has a clear, two-pronged strategy to take over Europe: religion and procreation. That is, Muslims want to conquer Europe with 'faith and the birthrate.' He said that Muslims look on Christians as weak and believe that since they have no children and barely practice their faith, Islam will easily conquer them. He went on to say that Muslims take their faith more seriously than most Christians, and they are gaining ground because of it. Do you agree with that assessment?

SOOKHDEO: I agree with both sentiments, and immigration has emerged as a critical issue. Some Muslim theorists are arguing that the days of national borders are over and that the global south has a right to enter into Europe and to make their home there. They regard that as a human right. Given the recent waves of refugees arriving into Europe, which is set to continue, and countries of central Europe and the Baltic states which historically have had very few Muslims, they are now being blackmailed by Germany and the EU to open their borders to Muslim refugees. Secondly, the demographic argument is correct, and Europeans do not want to have one or two children. Given that many of those coming into Europe are young men and the population in refugees is a young population, the exponential growth is unstoppable. Thirdly, the weakness and insipid faith particularly of Protestant Christianity in Northern Europe leave them vulnerable. This also includes Catholic and Orthodox countries. Their position leaves them open to a strong militant faith that is sure of itself and assertive.

VOL: In your estimation what can be done about dealing with the Islamic State following this most recent attack?

SOOKHDEO: If a virus enters the body there are two ways in dealing with it. One is to try to stop it immediately and kill it dead. The second is to allow it to develop and try slowly to contain it. The strategy of UK and America has been to degrade ISIS. They have said it will take up to 30 years to do that. If that approach is used in a body, the body will inevitably die because the virus will attack all parts of the body until it collapses.

If on the other hand it decides to kill the virus at earlier stages, then you have a strong chance of the body surviving.

Mr. Cameron and Mr. Obama have chosen not to defeat and destroy the Islamic State immediately but to degrade IS over a period of 30 years. I believe that is a grave mistake to make. The cancer of ISIS is spreading to such an extent that it will now be difficult to defeat them in a single theatre of action. I believe that Cameron and Obama have got it wrong and must now change their strategy.

Firstly, they should recognize that the ideology must be defeated and the ideology comes principally from Saudi Arabia and Salafist ideology.

Secondly, they must deal with the narrative, and they must find a way of deconstructing the narrative.

Thirdly, it must address the social media of IS and find a way of countering it and neutralizing it.

Finally, they must face up to the need for the deployment of ground troops and enter into a coalition of all winning partners, including Russia, Iran, and Egypt and President Assad, in order to defeat ISIS. The Islamic State poses an existential threat to all of us and illustrates those assassins of old. They had to be wiped out. If the Islamic State is not defeated, then there will come a point where it will be very difficult, which is where we are now with misguided policies.

VOL: Is there a nuclear option for the West?

SOOKHDEO: A nuclear option is not possible. There are only about 50,000 ISIS hard core militants scattered over northern Iraq and parts of Syria and Persia to Libya Sinai and parts of North Africa. They are in West Africa in Northern Nigeria as Boko Haram, in East Africa under El Shabab, and in South and East Asia.

VOL: Would you give my readers an overview of the eschatology of Islamic State?

SOOKHDEO: ISIS has an eschatology which basically believes that their Jesus (called Isa) will come again, but he will come as a Muslim and will marry, have children, and die alongside Mohammed and that he will do four things.
1. He will first kill all pigs signifying all pagans.
2. He will destroy all crosses. IS says there is a no one on the cross.
3. They will convert all Christians to Islam.
4. They will kill all Jews.

ISIS is currently destroying Christianity in the Middle East. It is, whether we like it or not, a war on the cross. As Christians we must recognize that and decide how we are going to respond, not with war and violence but firmness of conviction as to our faith, compassionate concern for Muslims, and identification with our brothers in the Middle East who are suffering with a passion to win Muslims for Christ. The only solution to an ISIS ideology is a superior ideology which is what the Christian faith is.

VOL: Thank you Dr. Sookhdeo.

The Rev. Dr. Patrick Sookhdeo is the director of the Institute for the Study of Islam and Christianity and International Director of the Barnabas Fund. Sookhdeo is an outspoken spokesman for persecuted Christian minorities around the world. He has made many media appearances in Great Britain and is an advocate for human rights and freedom of religion. He is a commentator on jihadist ideology and has lectured British and NATO military officers on radical Islam. https://www.barnabasaid.org/