Sep 10 2014
An American Who Almost Joined a Jihad, Shares His Views on ISIS
The shocking videos of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) showing its members beheading journalists, has provided President Obama an impetus to take swift military action in northern Iraq. Obama plans to unveil his strategy in detail on Wednesday evening.
But the videos have also raised the question among Americans of what would prompt people to do such unspeakably cruel things. On this program we have explored already the propaganda value of the videos.
Today, we explore the fact that the man in videos apparently has a British accent. That Western born or raised people would find common cause with ISIS elicits many questions. What would drive the man that authorities have dubbed Jihadi John to wage a holy war? What motivates the Stoughton, Massachusetts raised Syrian American Ahmad Abusamra, to allegedly support ISIS?
One man named Michael Muhammad Knight has attempted to shed a little light on those questions.
GUEST: Michael Muhammad Knight, has written 9 books including Tripping with Allah: Islam, Drugs, and Writing; he writes for Vice, and has just published a piece on the Washington Post called “I understand why Westerners are joining Jihadi movements like ISIS. I was almost one of them.”
Click here to read Knight’s piece in the Washington Post. Follow him on Twitter @MM_Knight.
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