Synopsis

The brutal ascent of ISIS was not a sudden eruption, but the culmination of calculated miscalculations and devastating mistakes. This is a story of how a nation fractured after the American withdrawal, and the perilous implications of a renewed conflict. As part of a special FRONTLINE series, correspondent Martin Smith journeys to Iraq, examining the unraveling of the country and the weighty consequences for the United States. He investigates the origins of ISIS's terrifying rise, revealing