Reading done on December 2 2017
"Jihad Selfies: These British Extremists in Syria Love Social Media"
- by Aris Roussinos - December 12 2013
- photos source:
https://news.vice.com/en_us/article/j54vx3/jihad-selfies-these-british-extremists-in-syria-love-social-media
This article discusses the social media (Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter) uploads of foreign fighters from ISIS and their subgroup the Muhajireen Brigade, also known as Jaish al-Muhajireen wal Ansar in an effort to promote their cause and encourage more foreigners to join them.
According to Roussinos, some photograph posts on social media were of two British ‘martyrs’ in a jihadist internet café in Atmeh posted with a caption on Facebook by another British fighter paying tribute to his two martyr brothers. Furthermore, Roussinos claims that the Atmeh internet café is frequently shown in social media posts indicating the ‘normal’ life jihadis have far from the front lines.
To add, he claims that “In a clear recruiting drive, British fighters frequently refer to Syria’s “Five-Star jihad” and urge their compatriots at home to join them while they still can” (Roussinos 2013). There are 2 photographs in the article showing the British jihadis with food supplies from Britain. While providing multiples photos, Roussinos (2013) claims that these young jihadis enjoy the life of the carefree “traditional boy’s bachelor party” lifestyle; some of these photos are of jihadis swimming, jihadis with their cars or with their guns, photos of the pizzas or the kebab they eat, even the villas they ‘own’, and the trainings they undergo.
Above are screenshots of some of the photographs uploaded on social media by individual jihadis (retrieved from the article Jihad Selfies: These British Extremists in Syria Love Social Media by Aris Roussinos.