Is there a clash of civilisations between Islam and the West? - Discuss

Huntington ultimately ascribes Islam the main source of conflict with the West in his ‘Clash of Civilisations’ movement. In recent years this clash has been witnessed in the rise of political Islam, characterised by its fundamentalism. This evident in the growth of extremist groups such as Islamic State and Hamas in the Levant and Boko Haram in Nigeria who use these beliefs as their anti-west agenda as a means for inflicting terror. Islamic State who are arguably the most notorious terrorist group in recent years, have proven their hostility towards the West through barbaric tactics such as the filmed beheading of British journalists. The ability for extremist groups to expand and exert their influence on a global scale, particularly within the West, triggering multiple terror attacks such as the 7/7 terror attacks in London and the Charlie Hebdo attack in France, reflects how conflict between the Islam and the West is inevitable. This rise in political Islam has reflected a shift towards Islamic fundamentalism, which is not synonymous with the West’s secular beliefs and thus catalysing conflict between both civilisations as Huntington predicted.
On the contrary, while the popularity and influence of extremist groups has grown rapidly, this is unreflective of the general Islamic population. In recent years we have witnessed the appeal of western values in the Islamic world, showing that conflict is not inevitable. In 2011, a series of uprisings occurred across North Africa and the Middle East in what was known as the Arab Spring. The main aim of the uprisings was to overthrow the oppressive totalitarian systems in place and install representative democracies, similar to those established in the West. The Arab Spring was successful in the case of Egypt which successfully overthrew the dictatorship of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt. Due to the heavy use of social media, Western media heavily publicised the situation, reflecting a sense of cooperation. Furthermore, the appeal of democracy across the Middle East also reflects a step towards Western values and a potentiality for coexistence between western civilisations and Islam. Furthermore, the Arab world is further adopting Western values on civil rights and liberties as shown in Saudi Arabia overruling the law which prevented women to drive. The fact that the public view on the west across the Middle East is softening and even suggesting a slight appeal to their values, shows that conflict is not inevitable as either side can adopt similar values and ideas without undermining religious beliefs.