Under the Black Flag: At the Frontier of the New Jihad

Description

The Islamic State movement (ISIS/IS/ISIL) burst onto the world stage in 2014. From its heartland in Syria, where it arose from the chaos of the Syrian Revolt, the organisation has expanded in ideology and membership and now poses a significant threat to the region, if not to the wider world. Sami Moubayed, a Beirut-based journalist who has been analysing Syria and the region for 20 years, has unrivalled access to the movement and its participants. His book is the first inside account of an organisation which has dominated the headlines with a dangerous mix of barbarity and military prowess. In looking at the historical background of ISIS: where it came from, how it evolved, where it stands today and what its aims are for the future to reveal, it will provide, for the first time, a fully-fledged picture of what lies at the heart of the Islamic State. Contents Acknowledgements Preface One Ideological Foundations for the Caliphate Who Can be a Caliph? Deep Roots in History The Birth of Wahhabism Wahhabism Today The Caliphate from 1924 to 2014 A Caliphate Declared Null and Void Two Gentleman Politics and Early Fanatics Turning to the Underground The Godfather, Marwan Hadid The Alawites Gentleman Politics in Reverse: Hama 1964 Collusion with Hafez al-Assad Hama 1982 Ghosts of Hama Three The Syrian Contingent and Abdullah Azzam Abu Musaab al-Souri: A New Leader of Syrian Jihadis A New Jihad Money is Money Jihadis Come Home Four Abu Mohammad al-Golani Running a ‘State’ The Kings of Pain Five The Iraqi Insurgency After 2003 The Islamic State in Iraq Six A Star is Born: Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi See You in New York Charting New Territory Al-Golani vs Al-Baghdadi Seven ISIS’s Capital in al-Raqqa The Caliph Wears Black The ISIS Police and its Civil Service Crime and Punishment Jihadi John ISIS Education ISIS Funding ISIS Media Eight Operation Mum Tricked into Suicide Punishment by Jinn Arab Jihadis Western Warriors Loose Borders Chinese Jihadis Chechen Rebels Corrupting the Jihadi Community No Passports Nine Diary of a Muhajirah Rebels Without a Cause The First Women of ISIS Ten Disguised as Refugees Ansar Bayt al-Maqdis The Islamic State in Libya ISIS’s Expanding Frontiers Conclusion Key Figures Notes Index