ISIS recruits lack the most basic knowledge of Islam
Here's a shocking piece of information for those who have associated ISIS with absolute obedience to the Qur’an -most ISIS recruits do not have even the most basic knowledge of Islam. A new research shows that out of the 3,000 applicants, 70 percent had the lowest level of knowledge about the Sharia, 24 percent had intermediate knowledge and a meager 5 percent had any concrete knowledge about it.
Most ISIS Recruits Actually Know Almost Nothing About Islam[/tweetthis]
This new finding echoes the voices of the wider Muslim community worldwide who have been insisting that the actions of ISIS are very much un-Islamic.
A research was conducted by the Associated Press wherein they analyzed more than 3,000 questionnaires filled by individuals aspiring to join the militant group. The discovery that this research made was truly amazing: very few applicants had any knowledge about Islam at all, contrary to what people have otherwise thought about them. In fact, two British recruits were found to have ordered Islam for Dummies and The Koran for Dummies from Amazon in a bid to prepare themselves before joining ISIS.
The results of this study indicate that the desire to join Islam has stemmed out of cultural alienation and discrimination and not because of a deep knowledge of the religion. This means that people everywhere will have to introspect into their own actions and behaviors towards Muslims, rather than condemn their religion for ISIS' atrocities. The cultural alienation that these Muslims go through, coupled with their lack of knowledge of their religion, makes them vulnerable prey for the agents of ISIS. We can even go to the extent of saying that it is particularly this class of Muslims which the ISIS targets. The study shows that Muslims who have a sound knowledge of Islam are less likely to get indoctrinated with ISIS ideology.
'Islam for Dummies': ISIS recruits have poor grasp of faith https://t.co/82oF2Whz1T via @TOIWorld
— Kent Kaiser, PhD APR (@kentkaiser) August 16, 2016
Islamic scholar Mohammed Abdelfadel, an expert at tracking ISIS propaganda, has found that the agents of the group indoctrinate the recruits with very superficial and faulty knowledge of what is “haram and halal.” He also says that the recruits are shown a very different picture of Islam with faulty and partial interpretations of Qur’anic verses. The lack of knowledge of Islam on part of the recruits makes them easy prey to these wrong teachings so that the Islam they follow is not the Islam of the Qur’an at all.
The study found that it is rare to find a Muslim with concrete knowledge of Islam working with ISIS. This study comes as an eye-opener to people who are increasingly misunderstanding Muslims due to the actions of ISIS. As for the Muslims who have been the victims of Islamophobia, the results of this study come as a ray of hope, with a belief that society will see them as the victims, and not perpetrators of the crimes committed by the ISIS.