Would you really be surprised if it was the second bit you mentioned
ISIS in Iraq and Syria
- Thread starter Suli
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What I don't understand is why they just couldn't let him go home to Kuwait and attend to this new job and marriage, not like he'd be a threat over there.
Much appreciated mate. How's it going in Poland?
The same site has a long defense of Anwar al-Awlaki, a former leader of AQAP. They're Islamist apologists, basically.
A few problems with that article. Emwazi was known to associate with people involved with al-Shabab, two of whom were later killed in drone strikes in Somalia. Also, according to the Washington Post reporter who broke the story, several of his captives in Syria since released have stated he was obsessed with Somalia. This makes his claims about a 'safari' trip extremely dubious, would explain exactly why authorities were interested in him, and debunks the whole 'MI5 radicalised him' idea.
Also, it claims that he was refused travel to Kuwait three times, and this had the effect of tipping him over the edge. Yet he somehow managed to travel to Turkey (and on to Syria) without any difficulties after that.
Then there is the weird, implied moral argument that somehow becoming the star beheader for the most notorious jihadi outfit of our time is the natural reaction to the (alleged) harassment.
Finally, there is a problem of CAGE itself. CAGE have claimed that when they knew him, he was a beautiful, peaceful guy who wouldn't hurt a fly - the implication being that the alleged harassment somehow brutalised him. Given the above, it's far more likely that CAGE are either (a) terrible judges of character, or (b) have a very different moral outlook to most of us. Given their history, it's probably the latter. For example, here's Asim Qureshi, who was on Sky News and Channel 4 News last night defending CAGE, speaking at a Hizb ut-Tahrir (an international organisation whose aim is the restoration of the caliphate by peaceful means) gathering in 2006:
No chance Emwazi might have been encouraged by speeches like this, no? As @Sir Matt has already pointed out, this is not an isolated viewpoint - their entire raison d'etre is to rationalise jihadi violence.
There is certainly a need for organisations who monitor government abuse of anti-terror laws, etc. CAGE however are not the right people to be delivering that message.
Another thing is that you dont just decide you wanna fight if your country is troubling you. You dont just get ill treated and suddenly have feelings for Syrians and you dont just risk your life for isis in a morning. Its obviously a process and he probably had an obsession with jihad, which is why they probably monitored him
Here he is:
No wonder he was interested in Somalia with that Pirates cap.
It was more fun when he was that rapper.
CNN is all over this....
@2cents -that's not a fair assessment at all. I'll type up a response when I'm back home on my laptop tonight but off the top of my head-I'd urge you to look into a little more depth on CAGE's formation, the lives of the directors themselves and the harassment some of them have faced.
@Sultan have you seen the email correspondence with CAGE aswell? Multiple levels of abuse and harassment over a sustained period.
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Yes.
Here's another interesting response to that lengthy Atlantic article posted earlier on:
Last thing he needs right now.Just read this. I think it's a lot of obfuscation tbh. Islam is not that unique of a religion it just happens to be the main one we have to deal with right now. Moderate Muslims are living peacefully in most countries in the world and they don't need to give up their religion.
9000 Shia militia men backed by Iranian forces fighting to liberate Tikrit as we speak, allegedly.
Edit: Sunni tribesman have joined in the fighting too
Edit: Sunni tribesman have joined in the fighting too
I am going to Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt in the summer with my girlfriend. It is literally about 20 miles from the border of Saudi Arabia. Are ISIS a threat?
I think I read an article the other day that the major resorts in Egypt are under fairly heavy guard to keep the tourists safe from terror threats, so you should be fine.
Well it's in Sinai, which IS have declared to be a new province of theirs. But the IS franchise there are based on north Sinai, and I'd imagine security around Sharm and the other southern resorts would be tip-top (by Egyptian standards) right now.
From the home office...
The FCO advise against all but essential travel to:
The FCO advise against all but essential travel to:
- the Governorate of South Sinai, with the exception of the area within the Sharm el Sheikh perimeter barrier, which includes the airport and the areas of Sharm el Maya, Hadaba, Naama Bay, Sharks Bay and Nabq
I've also heard the security is very tight in touristy Egypt as they aim to maintain their tourism industry.
I can say from experience, having been to Dahab in 2009 and 2010 before all the latest unrest really started, that once my bus from Cairo reached the other side of the canal, there were regular checkpoints with passport checks all the way along the Sinai coast.
Tourist attractions would be a major target for Ansar beit al-makdas, who have joined the IS campaign. As it is with terror groups, stats wise you should be OK. However, why would you want to spend your holiday worrying about security issues?
You should be fine i went there recently, plenty of security around the city it's like a fortress.
You'll be fine in Sharm. Have a great holiday.
They won't go for tourist attractions. It's bad PR to spoil a countries economy it they are trying to recruit there.
I think you've got it the other way around.
Then it's addressing a strawman because I don't recall the previous article suggesting that atheism is the solution. In fact I think they both come to very similar conclusions.
These cnuts are now destroying the ancient city of Nimrud
These cnuts are now destroying the ancient city of Nimrud
I always think of my planned trip with a group of archaeologists to Iraq in 2003 which had to be cancelled because of the damn invasion.
I was listening to Dr Lamia al-Gailani, an Iraqi archaeologist, close to tears talking about the destruction of Nimrud. It's heartbreaking.
https://rjosephhoffmann.wordpress.com/2015/03/08/killing-history-the-isis-war-on-islam/#respond
Another interesting piece on ISIL destruction of history.
Another interesting piece on ISIL destruction of history.
Heartbreaking it is. It sounds odd, but I find myself more outraged at ISIS' crusade to eradicate our history than their murdering, raping and torturing of our people. Maybe I'm just desensitised to the latter.
What's the story behind that trip then?
I was fortunate enough to get in touch with a few German archaeologists who were organizing trips to Jordan and Iraq. Being interested in ME archaeology they offered me to come with their small group. I joined them in 2001 on a trip to Jordan, where I got kicked out at the airport and sent back home because the friendly Jordanian customs couldn't find my visa. Next year I got the almighty German passport and went again to Jordan in 2002. That's when the group started planning to travel to Iraq for March 2003. I was hoping like a little child at Christmas that fecking Bush wouldn't invade the country. Bastard!
March 2003...damn talk about bad luck.
And Jordanian customs are pretty much the only thing worse than ISIS in the Middle East.
How so ? You can just buy a Jordanian Visa for 10 Dinars near the customs checkpoint at Queen Alia.
Yes, if you're a US citizen.
Different story if you're an Iraqi crossing into or out of Jordan.