Monday, April 25, 2016 2:46:05 AM
The reluctant jihadi: how one recruit lost faith in Isis
The long read .. http://www.theguardian.com/news/series/the-long-read
"Comparing the GOP candidates' ISIS strategies with Obama's"
When Abu Ali joined Islamic State, he thought he had nothing left to lose. Once he had crossed the
border into Syria, he quickly realised it was the last place he wanted to be. By Robert F Worth
Tuesday 12 April 2016 15.00 AEST
[...]
The Akçakale border crossing into Syria. Photograph: Jamie Wiseman/Rex/Shutterstock
[...]
One night the emir in charge of the training course, a bald Syrian with pale skin who, in his previous life, had been a history teacher in Homs, said there was a special event in store. Once the men were all seated on the cave floor, the emir turned on the projector and a video flickered on the cave wall: an Arab man in an orange jumpsuit in a cage. Flames licked towards the cage, following a trail of petrol, and engulfed the man. A voiceover intoned that this was the Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh, who had been captured after his plane crashed.
[ Insert: United Arab Emirates, Key U.S. Ally in
ISIS Effort, Disengaged in December
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=110564603 ]
[...]
On the last day of the course, the men were summoned from their cave in the morning and asked to recite an oath of loyalty. As soon as the oath was over, the men were split up into groups. Abu Ali found himself standing with about three dozen other men near a bus. A Syrian commander in battle fatigues told them they were going to the frontlines in Iraq. “Sir, I don’t want to go to the frontline,” Abu Ali told the commander. “They said I could do administration in Raqqa.” The commander looked at him, stone-faced. “You swore an oath,” he said. “You must listen and obey now. The penalty could be death.” Abu Ali stood for a moment, registering the shock, then he walked towards the bus.
[...]
Pro-government fighters in Garma, outside Baghdad, where Abu Ali was sent with Isis forces to attack the Iraqi army.
Photograph: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images
[...]
They got along well. Abu Hassan was a former thief who had joined Isis in the hopes of making some money. As it turned out, Isis paid him a monthly salary of $150 at first, and then stopped. Abu Ali told me he was repeatedly promised a salary for months, and paid a grand total of $50.
The two conscientious objectors were in luck: there was electricity in the house, and even better, a television. They spent hours watching news updates and movies. They knew this was strictly forbidden by Isis, so they kept the windows shut. This made it almost unbearably hot and stuffy inside, but it was better than boredom. At one point Rambo came on. “I wish Rambo would join us here,” Abu Ali said. “We really need him.”
[...]
A displaced Iraqi woman from the Yazidi community. Isis sold hundreds of Yazidi women and girls into sex slavery.
Photograph: Safin Hamed/AFP/Getty Images
[ the obscenities of ISIS rival most anything we have seen or read of .. WARNING! even though we
have read of them before, the descriptions of murders and massacres here are still shockingly vivid .. ]
[...]
Tal Abyad in northern Syria, where Abu Ali was picked up by the group who helped him escape Isis. Photograph:
The Washington Post/Getty Images
http://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/12/reluctant-jihadi-recruit-lost-faith-in-isis
.. that said there are some funny little bits, like early on his trip he had some sensible doubts about his venture, which he promptly resisted as being words of the devil .. heh, when you attribute your own good common sense thoughts to the devil, you could think you have problems .. oh, and the Rambo one .. one endearing feature is in a description 'he seems constitutionally unable to not speak his mind' .. lol .. :) .. i like that .. anyway, BE AWARE there is tough to read reality stuff in there .. on balance it's a interesting read .. hope you enjoy.
The long read .. http://www.theguardian.com/news/series/the-long-read
"Comparing the GOP candidates' ISIS strategies with Obama's"
When Abu Ali joined Islamic State, he thought he had nothing left to lose. Once he had crossed the
border into Syria, he quickly realised it was the last place he wanted to be. By Robert F Worth
Tuesday 12 April 2016 15.00 AEST
[...]
The Akçakale border crossing into Syria. Photograph: Jamie Wiseman/Rex/Shutterstock
[...]
One night the emir in charge of the training course, a bald Syrian with pale skin who, in his previous life, had been a history teacher in Homs, said there was a special event in store. Once the men were all seated on the cave floor, the emir turned on the projector and a video flickered on the cave wall: an Arab man in an orange jumpsuit in a cage. Flames licked towards the cage, following a trail of petrol, and engulfed the man. A voiceover intoned that this was the Jordanian pilot Moaz al-Kasasbeh, who had been captured after his plane crashed.
[ Insert: United Arab Emirates, Key U.S. Ally in
ISIS Effort, Disengaged in December
http://investorshub.advfn.com/boards/read_msg.aspx?message_id=110564603 ]
[...]
On the last day of the course, the men were summoned from their cave in the morning and asked to recite an oath of loyalty. As soon as the oath was over, the men were split up into groups. Abu Ali found himself standing with about three dozen other men near a bus. A Syrian commander in battle fatigues told them they were going to the frontlines in Iraq. “Sir, I don’t want to go to the frontline,” Abu Ali told the commander. “They said I could do administration in Raqqa.” The commander looked at him, stone-faced. “You swore an oath,” he said. “You must listen and obey now. The penalty could be death.” Abu Ali stood for a moment, registering the shock, then he walked towards the bus.
[...]
Pro-government fighters in Garma, outside Baghdad, where Abu Ali was sent with Isis forces to attack the Iraqi army.
Photograph: Ahmad Al-Rubaye/AFP/Getty Images
[...]
They got along well. Abu Hassan was a former thief who had joined Isis in the hopes of making some money. As it turned out, Isis paid him a monthly salary of $150 at first, and then stopped. Abu Ali told me he was repeatedly promised a salary for months, and paid a grand total of $50.
The two conscientious objectors were in luck: there was electricity in the house, and even better, a television. They spent hours watching news updates and movies. They knew this was strictly forbidden by Isis, so they kept the windows shut. This made it almost unbearably hot and stuffy inside, but it was better than boredom. At one point Rambo came on. “I wish Rambo would join us here,” Abu Ali said. “We really need him.”
[...]
A displaced Iraqi woman from the Yazidi community. Isis sold hundreds of Yazidi women and girls into sex slavery.
Photograph: Safin Hamed/AFP/Getty Images
[ the obscenities of ISIS rival most anything we have seen or read of .. WARNING! even though we
have read of them before, the descriptions of murders and massacres here are still shockingly vivid .. ]
[...]
Tal Abyad in northern Syria, where Abu Ali was picked up by the group who helped him escape Isis. Photograph:
The Washington Post/Getty Images
http://www.theguardian.com/news/2016/apr/12/reluctant-jihadi-recruit-lost-faith-in-isis
.. that said there are some funny little bits, like early on his trip he had some sensible doubts about his venture, which he promptly resisted as being words of the devil .. heh, when you attribute your own good common sense thoughts to the devil, you could think you have problems .. oh, and the Rambo one .. one endearing feature is in a description 'he seems constitutionally unable to not speak his mind' .. lol .. :) .. i like that .. anyway, BE AWARE there is tough to read reality stuff in there .. on balance it's a interesting read .. hope you enjoy.
It was Plato who said, “He, O men, is the wisest, who like Socrates, knows that his wisdom is in truth worth nothing”
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