Al Qaeda And ISIS Had A Spectacular Falling Out. Here's What Happened

To an outsider it may seem they have a lot in common, but al-Qaeda and the Islamic State group, also known as ISIS, are nothing less than bitter rivals. While they were once allied, a complex blend of power struggles, ideology and strong disagreements over ISIS's especially brutal tactics pulled the extremists apart.

ISIS is not a branch of the al-Qaeda group . . . does not have an organizational relationship with it and [al-Qaeda] is not the group responsible for their actions, al-Qaeda's leadership communicated decisively in February.

Here's the backstory of how the groups went from partners to bitter enemies in a few years.

More from the WorldPost on the Islamic State:- Mothers Of ISIS - This Timeline Shows The Lightning Rise Of ISIS - Anonymous Declares War On ISIS After Paris Attacks - The strange irony hidden among the highest ranks of ISIS - Queen Rania: Let's Drop The First 'I' In ISIS. There's Nothing Islamic About Them