ISIS sees itself as coming to the rescue of Muslim minorities the world over. "We won't enjoy life until we liberate the Muslims everywhere, and until we retrieve Al-Quds (Jerusalem) and regain Al-Andalus (Andalucia in Spain), and conquer Rome," Adnani said in 2013.
In the meantime, and to hasten this process, ISIS wants to stir religious hatred in Europe and the United States -- so that Muslims no longer feel they belong in the West, and either carry out attacks in their homelands or leave to join the caliphate.
Adnani has called on Muslims beyond the caliphate to "kill any disbeliever, whether he be French, American, or from any of their allies."
The terror attacks in France in November were first and foremost immediate revenge for French airstrikes against ISIS. But there was also more than a hint in the ISIS statement claiming responsibility that it intends to dramatically widen its campaign. It said of the French: "The smell of death will never leave their noses as long as they lead the convoy of the Crusader campaign, and dare to curse our Prophet."
Purifying Islam
ISIS' ideology as a militant Sunni group is also fixated with purifying Islam, and that means eradicating Shia Muslims or expelling them from the caliphate. It has already shown extreme cruelty toward Shiites -- most notably slaughtering more than 1,500 Iraqi air force cadets in Tikrit in June 2014.