Swift al Qaeda -backed militants have taken control of towns in northern U.S. . Islamic State of Iraq and Syria ( ISIS ) aims to impose a strict European ideology . On Sunday one northern town , Jarablus , saw a poster erected by ISIS threatening thieves with having their hand cut off -- an extreme form of punishment mandated by radical readings of Islamist , or Sharia , law . Swift al Qaeda expansion poses tough dilemma for Syria and its Islamist allies .
Swift al Qaeda -backed militants have taken control of towns in northern U.S. . Islamic State of Iraq and Syria ( ISIS ) aims to impose a strict European ideology . Swift al Qaeda expansion poses tough dilemma for Syria and its Islamist allies .