IS Spain

Daily Star, Brit spies take out ISIS terror cell 'plotting attack on tourist hotspots' "The cell used internet chat rooms and messaging apps to recruit jihadis in order to carry out savage attacks on popular resorts, cops said."

Australian jihadists

news.com.au, Australian jihadists are being ‘martyred’ in the Middle East. Here’s a few of those we know most about, 5 May 2016 "Inspired to wage violent jihad on behalf of Islamic State, more than 100 Australians are now international outcasts."

IS Files

Mark White, Sky News, IS Files: The Families UK Jihadis Left Behind, 4 May 2016 "Sky News knocks on the doors of addresses in the documents and finds relatives of British recruits are confused by their leaving." Report + videos

IS Bombards Social Media With Propaganda in Russian

VOA, IS Bombards Social Media With Propaganda in Russian "The Islamic State (IS) is bombarding social media with Russian language propaganda aimed at attracting new recruits from targeted audiences."

Terrorists prefer to chat on Telegram and email with Gmail

Jose Pagliery, CNN Money, Terrorists prefer to chat on Telegram and email with Gmail, 3 May 2016 "The free, mobile chatting service Telegram -- which is anonymous and encrypted -- is used by 34% of jihadists whose communications were the subject of a study by cybersecurity firm Trend Micro (TMICF)."

UK's covert propaganda bid to stop Muslims joining Isis

Guardian, Revealed: UK's covert propaganda bid to stop Muslims joining Isis, 2 May 2016 "In a sign of mounting anxiety across Whitehall over the persuasiveness of Islamic State’s online propaganda, a secretive Home Office unit has developed a discreet multimillion pound counter-messaging operation that it says privately is running at “industrial pace and scale”."

Radical Islam in Dagestan

Economist, Radical Islam in Dagestan: Russia’s crackdown on Salafis may be breeding extremism "Since last autumn, the authorities in Dagestan have ramped up pressure against Salafis. They have reason to worry: as Moscow launched air strikes in support of Syria’s government, the Islamic State (IS) declared a holy war on Russia, took credit for downing a Russian passenger jet over Egypt and released a video threatening “a sea of blood” in Russia itself. Officially, some 900 Dagestanis have left for Syria. Independent experts say the true figure may be as high as 4,000."

IS 'hit list'

Telegraph, Islamic State threatens to expose British military secrets after publishing US Air Force 'hit list', 1 May 2016 "The group, which calls itself the "Islamic State Hacking Division", said in its online posting: "In our next leak we may even disclose secret intelligence the Islamic State has just received from a source the brothers in the UK have spent some time acquiring from the Ministry of Defence in London as we slowly and secretly infiltrate England and the USA online and off.”"

'Pain, Confusion, Anger, and Shame: The Stories of Islamic State Families'

ICSR Report – Pain, Confusion, Anger, and Shame: The Stories of Islamic State Families "For every jihadist that has traveled to Syria, Libya, or other places where the group calling itself Islamic State (IS) has attemptedto take root, there is a family affected by what their sons or daughters, brothers or sisters, husbands or wives, have done. Their feelings and reactions are the subject of this paper."

Women's Orchestra in Kabul

US warns of links between Islamic State, Boko Haram

AP/Daily Mail, US warns of links between Islamic State, Boko Haram, 20 Apr 2016 "At "Ground Zero" in Africa's counterterrorism fight, senior U.S. officials warned of deepening links between the Islamic State and Boko Haram and prodded Chad's ruling strongman to introduce reforms for the sake of long-term stability."

The Islamic State’s Online Strategy and Violent Extremism in Africa

David Fidler, Into Africa: The Islamic State’s Online Strategy and Violent Extremism in Africa, 19 Apr 2016 "Military campaigns in Iraq and Syria have re-taken territory from the Islamic State and damaged it in other ways, including its ability to finance military operations. As counter-attacks continue in the Middle East, the Islamic State’s activities in Africa, especially North Africa, are increasing. These activities include a defining characteristic of the Islamic State—its use of the Internet and social media to strengthen its control of territory and advance its extremist agenda. This aspect of the group’s efforts in Africa has garnered less interest than the number of its fighters in North Africa or its territorial foothold in Libya. However, the Islamic State is applying its online strategy in Africa, which raises questions about how to respond to this development."

'Islamic State's' most wanted - Part 1: The takeover

BBC, 'Islamic State's' most wanted - Part 1: The takeover, 20 Apr 2016 [use this link to take you to the other parts of the series] "What happens when you resist the world's most violent jihadis?"

What Kind of Person Becomes a Violent Jihadi?

BBC News, What Kind of Person Becomes a Violent Jihadi? "For decades researchers, academics and psychologists have wanted to know what kind of person becomes a terrorist. If there are pre-existing traits which make someone more likely to kill for their beliefs – well, that would be worth knowing. In this edition of The Inquiry – part of the BBC World Service Identity Season – we tell the story of that search for a ‘terrorist type’. It’s a story which begins decades ago. But, with the threat from killers acting for so-called Islamic State, finding an answer has never felt more pressing." [it's note just about the internet!]

'Counter-terrorism drive for public to report online Isis propaganda'

Guardian, Counter-terrorism drive for public to report online Isis propaganda, 15 Apr 2016 "British counter-terrorism officials are launching a campaign to try to drive back Islamic State’s efforts to use the internet to foster extremism. Isis has turned the internet into a frontline of its jihad, using it to spread propaganda to gain recruits and embolden its supporters. However, 300 items a day are being taken down by a special police unit."

'Living Level-3'

islamicommentary.org, Graphic Novelist Joshua Dysart Spotlights the Darkness of Iraq with Living Level-3 "New York Times best-selling graphic novelist Joshua Dysart has written about serial killers, about superheroes, and about the supernatural. Now, with Living Level-3, he brings his talent for dark themes to the real-life humanitarian crisis in Iraq. “Comics & Dialogue” had the opportunity to speak with him about goals of this online graphic novel, its challenges, and the social issues that comics can uniquely address."

'Overwhelming majority of Arabs youth reject ISIS, poll finds'

alarabiya.net, Overwhelming majority of Arabs youth reject ISIS, poll finds, 14 Apr 2016

"The survey, undertaken by PR agency Asda'a Burson Marsteller, interviewed 3,500 youths aged 18-24 from 16 Arab countries, including Egypt, Algeria and Saudi Arabia."

al-Qaduli

Michael Weiss & Hassan Hassan, Daily Beast, Everything We Knew About This ISIS Mastermind Was Wrong, 15 Apr 2016 "He was one man, not two. He had at least seven names, and was mistakenly pronounced dead four times. But the fog surrounding ISIS’s No. 2 is finally beginning to part."

.krd

Reuters, Iraq's Kurds declare independence in cyberspace with .krd domain name, 14 Apr 2016 "The new top-level domain ".krd" gives Kurds a separate space in the virtual world at a time when they are gaining legitimacy on the ground through their alliance with the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State."

#towerlives

BBC Wales, #towerlives: Butetown's festival of storytelling - links through to several interesting videos, interviews and discussions relating to Butetown. Also see #TowerLives on Twitter "#towerlives is a week-long festival of storytelling and music, on air and on the ground, around the council estate tower blocks of Butetown in Cardiff." Recommended!!

'ISIS Has Hit List of Western Muslim Leaders'

counterjihadreport.com, ISIS Has Hit List of Western Muslim Leaders, 13 Apr 2016 "The latest issue (number 14) of the Islamic State’s propaganda magazine, Dabiq, published April 13, contains a hitlist of Muslim leaders in the West, specifically naming 21. A 22nd (Nihad Awad of the Muslim Brotherhood-linked Council on American Islamic Relations) is pictured, but not named."

'Hashtag fail? #BringBackOurGirls two years on'

AFP, Hashtag fail? #BringBackOurGirls two years on, 13 Apr 2016 "On the ground, 219 of the 276 girls are still missing, their Government Girls Secondary School is a broken ruin and Chibok is desperate for development."

'ISIS Really Wants You To Know It’s Operating In Bangladesh'

Buzzfeed, ISIS Really Wants You To Know It’s Operating In Bangladesh, 13 Apr 2016 " In the latest issue of its propaganda magazine Dabiq, ISIS features both a Bengali jihadi and a man it claims is leading its operations inside the country. "

'How To Lose Your Mind To ISIS And Then Fight To Get It Back'

Mike Giglio & Munzer al-Awad, Buzzfeed, How To Lose Your Mind To ISIS And Then Fight To Get It Back, 11 Apr 2016, "It’s far easier to join ISIS than to leave. Members of a hidden community of ISIS defectors recount how they were pulled into the grip of extremism — and their struggle to escape. Mike Giglio and Munzer al-Awad report for BuzzFeed News from the Syrian border."

Bakraoui brothers

mashable.com, ISIS claims Paris and Brussels attacks began with Bakraoui brothers "Dabiq, the slick online propaganda magazine published by the Islamic State (ISIS), provides news details in an issue released Wednesday on the group's role in the March 22 attacks in Brussels and links to the Paris attacks."

'The reluctant jihadi'

Guardian, Robert F. Worth, The reluctant jihadi: how one recruit lost faith in Isis "[But] ... some of the true believers who arrived in the Islamic State were discovering that life there was not quite the paradise they had imagined. A new narrative – of disillusionment, of horror, of black comedy – was slowly leaking out from the inside. Abu Ali would become one of its voices."

#HalalChallenge

Vice. Munchies, The #HalalChallenge Encourages Racism Via Pork, 12 Apr 2016, "The creators of the #HalalChallenge say that the slaughter of animals according to Islamic law is a form of cruelty. The Qur’an dictates that an animal must fully bleed out; in practice, animals are sometimes killed without sedation methods like stunning. But the movement has attracted various right wing anti-Muslim or anti-immigrant supporters, and critics say the campaign is racism in disguise. The German broadcaster Deutsche Welle reports that the organizer of Bonn’s anti-immigration movement as well as the founder of Hooligans Against Salafists have cheered the #HalalChallenge online."

'China tech companies pledge to tackle content that promotes terrorism'

Guardian, China tech companies pledge to tackle content that promotes terrorism, 12 Apr 2016 "China says it faces a serious threat from groups such as the East Turkestan Islamic Movement (ETIM), which operates in China’s restive far western region of Xinjiang, home to the Muslim Uighur people, where hundreds have died in violence in recent years."

Islamic State nets millions selling plundered antiquities online

SMH, Islamic State nets millions selling plundered antiquities online, 8 aPR 2016 " Islamic State is more often associated with images of antiquities being destroyed in Palmyra and Nimrud, than with cultural heritage preservation. But previous reports of the group selling looted artefacts in the Middle East are now understood to be part of a multimillion-dollar revenue stream managed with the help of the internet."

#WhatBritishMuslimsReallyThink

Photo: Trevor Phillips, Channel 4

BBC News, What some Muslims think of 'what British Muslims really think', 11 Apr 2016 "What do British Muslims really think? It's a question that news organisations have repeatedly tried to answer since the terror attacks of 9/11 and 7/7, and one that suggests that maybe the person asking isn't a British Muslim."

Also see Channel 4, What British Muslims Really Think

ICM Data Set is here

Also see #WhatBritishMuslimsReallyThink on Twitter

I haven't looked at any of this material in detail yet. 

Digital Human, Home

Digital Human, Home "In The Digital Human: Home Aleks asks what turns a space into a place and whether we really need bricks and mortar anymore, when home can be anywhere you can go online."

Lebanon Internet

middleeasteye.net, Lebanon's illegal internet boom sparks crackdown - and calls for reform "With some of the slowest and most expensive internet speeds in the world, Lebanon has become a hotbed for illegal internet providers that supply people desperate to get their hands on internet speedier than the state-run company, Ogero - the only legal provider. According to a recent study, the internet in Lebanon is slower than Egypt and Syria."

Wi-Fi Theft Fatwa

AP, Islamic authorities in Dubai are saying that wireless Internet belonging to neighbors cannot be used without their permission, 11 Apr 2016 "The edict says: "There is nothing wrong in using the line if your neighbors allow you to do so, but if they'd don't allow you, you may not use it.""

'How a Saudi Arabian singer defied tradition to follow her dream'

Alaa Basatneh, fusion.net, How a Saudi Arabian singer defied tradition to follow her dream "Commenters on Tarabzouni’s social media accounts seem to be split into two camps: the supporters and the haters. “They should take away your passport, and marry you off to a man who will make you forget the stupid singing thing,” one commenter wrote on her Instagram account in Arabic. Another comment reads, “I’m really proud of u because u r a girl from my country and u break the stupid traditions. KEEP GOING.”"

IS video threat

Independent, Isis supporters threaten UK with terror attacks in new propaganda video, 5 Apr 2016

Engare, a videogame about the mathematical beauty of Islamic art

Chris Priestman, killscreen.com, Engare, a videogame about the mathematical beauty of Islamic art, 4 Apr 2016 "Iranian game maker Mahdi Bahrami is the kind of person who answers a question with more questions. I don’t think he can stop himself. “What will happen if I add a short line to one of the tiles in a mosque?” he asks me. “If we take into account the tiling rules of the mosque, what would the whole wall look like after we add the line? What if we change the rules? What would the mosque ceiling look like?” I don’t know. But for Bahrami, that’s entirely the point—his upcoming puzzle game Engare is about exploring this unknown space and finding the answer."

TrueCrypt+ISIS

Evan Ratliff, New Yorker, The strange origins of TrueCrypt, ISIS’s favored encryption tool "When one would-be bomber was dispatched from Syria to France, Callimachi writes, “an Islamic State computer specialist handed him a USB key. It contained CCleaner, a program used to erase a user’s online history on a given computer, as well as TrueCrypt, an encryption program that was widely available at the time and that experts say has not yet been cracked.”" Also see Rukmini Callimachi, How ISIS Built the Machinery of Terror Under Europe’s Gaze, 29 Mar 2016

IS update

Reuters/channelnewsasia, Islamic State executes 15 of its own near Raqqa, Syria - monitor

Taliban app

bloomberg.com, Taliban Develop Smartphone App to Advance Propaganda Efforts, 2 April 2016 "The Pashto language app includes content such as official statements and videos from the Taliban, which has sought insurgency in the country for more than 14 years since it was ousted in 2001 with help from the U.S. The app appeared on Google’s Play Store until Saturday, when it was removed to fix some "technical issues," Mujahed said. The app should reappear soon, he said."

Prosecution

ITV News, Delivery driver Junead Khan found guilty of planning terror attack against US military in UK, 1 April 2016 "A delivery driver from Luton has been convicted of preparing to carry out a terror attack on an RAF base in East Anglia where US military personnel are stationed." Tech themes in this story.

Losing your brother to ISIS

CNN, Losing your brother to ISIS

Snapchat Imams

qz.com, This imam delivers eight-second Snapchat sermons "For the past few months, Webb, a Muslim scholar based in Washington, D.C., has been answering young Muslims’ questions via eight-second videos. His Snapchat story topics cover everything from dating and drugs, to the exact specifications for prayer and fasting."

Reading List: What do Islamist extremists believe? Salafi-Jihadism by Shiraz Maher and Crusade and Jihad by Malcolm Lambert

Guardian, What do Islamist extremists believe? Salafi-Jihadism by Shiraz Maher and Crusade and Jihad by Malcolm Lambert – review

Lahore bombings

Time.com, Outpouring of Sadness and Solidarity for Pakistan as World Reacts to Lahore Blast, 28 Mar 2016

#Brussels attacks

Round-up of coverage associated with #Brussels attacks  

Guardian, Why did the bombers target Belgium?


BBC News, Islamic State group claims responsibility for Brussels attacks in statement issued via its Amaq news agency

Daily Mail Online, 79 minutes of terror in #Brussels | How airport and metro explosions left 34 dead  

Rula Jebreal, Already, there have been shameless attempts to exploit #Brussels attacks for political purposes.  

AirLive, Photo of #Brussels Airport Bombers released (Belgian media) 

Mic, Facebook's Safety Check feature has been switched on in #Brussels 

BBC Breaking News ‏@BBCBreaking, "These people are sick". #Brussels airport passengers describe moment of explosions. 

Guardian, Brussels explosions: multiple casualties after airport and metro blasts – live
 
Guardian, Brussels attacks: were they revenge for Abdeslam's arrest?

The Battle of Ideas in the Middle East

BBC World Service, The Battle of Ideas in the Middle East - Part One "Kevin Connolly travels through the Middle East to look at different ways in which the Arab states in the region are confronting the ideas of the so-called Islamic State and how well-equipped they are to fight them" Worth listening to, as it relates to several themes associated with this blog, including online issues. Also see Kevin Connolly, BBC News, Battle of ideas at heart of fight against Islamic State

Istanbul hit by suicide bomb attack

Guardian, Istanbul hit by suicide bomb attack

Prayers, Pilgrims and Power

BBC World Service, Prayers, Pilgrims and Power "The Imam Reza shrine in the Iranian city of Mashhad is a spectacular complex visited by millions of pilgrims every year. It's also spectacularly wealthy, and part of a huge business empire worth an estimated $20 billion. So the person who runs it has considerable power. Earlier this month that person changed. BBC Persian's Najieh Ghulami, who's from Mashhad, discusses the change of guard and shares memories of the shrine."

The programme also covers other issues relating to this blog, including social media and censorship in Turkey, and Saudi Arabian comedy (which has a social media element).

Syrian 3D Images

APF, 3D Images of Syria Archaeological Treasures Go Online

Surveillance society

Duncan Riley, Silicon Angle, You are being watched: The surveillance society of 2016

IS prosecution

AP, Pizzeria owner who recruited for IS group gets 22 1/2 years "Mufid Elfgeeh, 32, had pleaded guilty in December in federal court in Rochester to attempting to provide material support to a terrorist organization in 2013 and 2014."

Abdeslam arrest

BBC News, Paris attacks: 'Quick' Abdeslam extradition from Belgium sought, 19 Mar 2016

John Cantlie Video

Daily Mail, British ISIS hostage John Cantlie appears in new propaganda footage from inside Mosul one year after his last video appearance, 19 Mar 2016 "Cantlie, who was kidnapped in November 2012, is shown berating the US-led coalition for bombing a media building in the ISIS-held city of Iraq."

'Not all marriages are equal'

altmuslimah.com, Not all marriages are equal: Islamic marriage, Temporary Marriage, Secret marriage and Polygamous marriage

ISIS lures with video game themes

RNS, ISIS lures with video game themes "Javier Lesaca, a scholar who has spent hundreds of hours studying ISIS videos, says the terrorist organization has masterfully mimicked not only the look and feel of popular, violent games such as “Grand Theft Auto” and “Call of Duty,” but television shows — “Homeland,” “Saw,” and “Person of Interest,” to name a few — which, like the video games, feature strapping young men in cool sunglasses who kill without mercy."

Life Inside 'Islamic State'

BBC, Life Inside 'Islamic State' "A Syrian man describes the horror of everyday life in the IS stronghold of Raqqa."

Babar Ahmad

BBC News, Babar Ahmad: My support for Taliban was 'naive', 13 Mar 2016 "A British man jailed over a website considered a key moment in the birth of online jihadist propaganda said he had been "naive" to support the Taliban." I presented some images from this website during my Leiden presentation last week (see earlier posts). Ahmad is interviewed for the Victoria Derbyshire programme.

Reading List: new ISIS book

David Kilcullen, Guardian, The deadly efficiency of Isis and how it grew on the global stage "In this exclusive extract from his hotly anticipated book Blood Year, counterinsurgency expert David Killcullen maps out the leaderless resistance, remote radicalisation, and guerrilla-style terrorism that characterise the ‘Isis Internationale’."

Jihad: Between Theory and Practice.

I gave a paper at Leiden University last Friday, as part of their conference Jihad: Between Theory and Practice.

It was an interesting event and well-organised event (convened by Dr Jelle Bruning), with other presentations by Asma Afsaruddin (Indiana University) on 'Qur'anic Jihad and Its Interpretations', and Yumna Masarwa Institute for American Universities, Aix-en-Provence) on 'Ribat, Jihad, and Archaeology'.    There's a related interview on my 'E-Jihad 2.0' paper here: Mare, Slick en schokken.

'IS' profiled

BBC News - Islamic State group: The full story [comprehensive, have yet to read it in full]

'The funny side of Saudi'

BBC News, The funny side of Saudi, 7 Mar 2016

Omar al-Shishani

Independent, Isis leader Abu Omar al-Shishani - also known as Omar the Chechen - 'killed in US air strike', 9 Mar 2016 "A senior Isis leader, Abu Omar al-Shishani, a Syrian-based Georgian national, may have been killed in an air strike by the US-led coalition, it has been reported."

'Malaysia reveals Islamic State plot to kidnap prime minister'

UPI, Malaysia reveals Islamic State plot to kidnap prime minister, 9 Mar 2016 "Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said he was among the targets."

'IS' video

Mail Online, Geriatric jihadi: Elderly suicide bomber drives armoured truck full of explosives towards Iraqi base before blowing himself up as gloating ISIS fighters watch, 8 Mar 2016

Twitter praised for cracking down on use by Islamic State

Reuters/CNBC, Twitter praised for cracking down on use by Islamic State, 8 Mar 2016 "Officials with the nonprofit Simon Wiesenthal Center praised Twitter on Monday for increasing efforts to thwart Islamic State's use of its platform for recruitment and propaganda."

Conference: Jihad: Between Theory and Practice

Universiteit Leiden, Conference, Jihad: Between Theory and Practice, 11 Mar 2016 "This workshop brings together international scholarly expertise on both modern and classical Islam and studies the diversity of ideas and practices behind jihad. With a diachronic and interdisciplinary approach, it will address the interpretations of jihad, its organization, and ways to spread jihad-related ideology." I will be presenting a paper on aspects of e-Jihad as part of this conference.

'Defending Pakistani women against honour killings'

Aurangzeb Qureshi, aljazeera.com, Defending Pakistani women against honour killings opinion piece "Although it may be understandable, shooting the messenger is never justifiable. Having the fortitude to look in the mirror and acknowledge societal flaws is the first step to correcting them."

'Reformed Islamic extremist' is accused of £1m iPhone fraud

Express, 'Reformed Islamic extremist' is accused of £1m iPhone fraud, 6 Mar 2016 allegations

RSA 2016

govtech.com (USA), RSA 2016: Terror Groups Propagate, Recruit on Social Media Platforms with Greater Efficiency "John Carlin, assistant attorney general for national security at the DOJ, said groups like the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, ISIS, IS) are using popular social media platforms to propagate and recruit with greater efficiency than ever before." Not exactly a headline

'Police close more than 1,000 terrorist websites and social media accounts every week'

Daily Star, Police close more than 1,000 terrorist websites and social media accounts every week, 6 Mar 2016 "The Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit – a police squad which fights online extremism – has removed 140,000 items of propaganda in the past five years."

'Owning Qadri, disowning Sharmeen'

The Nation, Owning Qadri, disowning Sharmeen, 3 Mar 2016 "#WeDisownSharmeen was the top social media trend on February 29. On a day the most illustrious terrorist in Pakistan was executed, petrol prices were slashed by almost 12% and Pakistan won an important cricket match at the Asia Cup, the most urgent message that the nation wanted to give out on social media was its denunciation of its only Oscar winning director."

UK spying laws

Independent, UK spying laws: Government introduces law requiring WhatsApp and iMessage to break their own security, 1 Mar 2016

'Osama bin Laden Warned an Islamic State Would Fail'

Nancy Youssef, Daily Beast, Osama bin Laden Warned an Islamic State Would Fail, 1 Mar 2016 "Before he was killed, the Al Qaeda chief urged his followers to put off dreams of a caliphate and focus on more pressing concerns."

Anti-Islamic Memes

Rose Deighton, huffingtonpost.com, Anti-Islamic Memes: The Ugly Side of Ignorance on the Internet, 29 Feb 2016

Shutdown of seminaries in Pakistan

indianexpress.com, Pakistan shuts down 254 religions seminaries involved in extremism, 25 Feb 2016 "167 suspected seminaries in Sindh, 13 in Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa, two in Punjab, and 72 unregistered seminaries in Sindh have been closed."

ISIS Is Losing Its Capital

Daily Beast, ISIS Is Losing Its Capital "Pentagon officials are cautiously optimistic that the terror group is entering its death throes, even as it advances on new territory." opinion

Radicalisation processes and the internet

:e Monde, Au procès d’apprentis djihadistes : « Comment j’ai pu être assez bête pour vouloir partir là-bas ? »

'Bearing Witness to the Rise of ISIS: The Story of Anna Therese Day'

Gail Sheehy, jezebel.com, Bearing Witness to the Rise of ISIS: The Story of Anna Therese Day, 25 Feb 2016 "As unlikely as it may seem, the story of Anna Day, an intrepid and slight blonde twentysomething from Idaho with a name like a Beatles song, is entangled with the saga of how peaceful political change sought by young Arab activists collapsed against the genocidal appeal of the ISIS narrative."

'How the changing media is changing terrorism'

Jason Burke, Guardian, How the changing media is changing terrorism, 25 Feb 2016 "New technologies have not only made it possible to produce propaganda with astonishing ease – they have also made it far easier to disseminate these films and images."

Iran to Spend $36 Million on Internet "Smart Filtering," to No Avail

payvand.com, Iran to Spend $36 Million on Internet "Smart Filtering," to No Avail, "“The fate of the Islamic Revolution is tied to cyberspace,” said hardline ideologue Rahimpour Azghadi on February 17, 2016. “We can use existing tools and capacities to spread the great message of the Revolution.”"

U.S. looks to Facebook, private groups to battle online extremism

Reuters, U.S. looks to Facebook, private groups to battle online extremism, 25 Feb 2016 " The U.S. government, acknowledging its limited success in combating Islamic extremist messaging, is recruiting tech companies, community organizations and educational groups to take the lead in disrupting online radicalization."

Isis video targets Twitter and Facebook CEOs over suspended accounts

Guardian, Isis video targets Twitter and Facebook CEOs over suspended accounts, 23 Feb 2016 "Islamic State has released a 25-minute video featuring the faces of Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg being riddled with mock bullet holes."

Saudi religious police arrested after online furore

AFP/Express Tribune, The Express Tribune > World Saudi religious police arrested after online furore, 23 Feb 2016 "Video purportedly shows members of the religious police, who enforce Islamic morality, chasing two women and then roughly handling one of them whose black abaya robe opened to reveal her leg."

Shazia Mirza interview/opinion

Daily Mail, 'ISIS fighters are the One Direction of Islam': Jihadi brides are suckers for terrorists' bad boy sex appeal, says British Muslim comic

'Should Silicon Valley Go to War?'

Fred Kaplan, MIT Technology Review, Should Silicon Valley Go to War?, 23 Feb 2016 "Imagine if hundreds of counter-­messages flooded an ISIS message board, and if at least some of them were designed to appeal to the sorts of people whom intelligence analysts had pegged as susceptible to recruitment. Keeping a propaganda line open—in order to track and possibly manipulate its contents and controllers—might be far more effective than a whack-a-mole attempt to shut it down." I have discussed this in my publications.

Halal Online verification

Business Insider, A Halal verification service has become so popular it's launching an IPO in London " ... Malaysia-based DagangHalal has created an online verification service for Muslims that allows people to check whether a product is fit for consumption under Shariah law. This not only includes food and drink but also "consumer goods and personal care, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, science and new technologies and hospitality and leisure amongst others.""

Smartphone Ownership and Internet Usage Continues to Climb in Emerging Economies

Jacob Poushter, Pew Research Center,Smartphone Ownership and Internet Usage Continues to Climb in Emerging Economies [PDF] "In many advanced economies, the ubiquity of the internet is now a given. It permeates commerce, social interactions, politics, culture and daily life. But this is not the case in all parts of the world. And while internet access continues to grow in poorer nations, there is still a long way to go before the world is completely wired."

'Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World'

The new edition of the 'Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World', edited by Richard C. Martin (Gale, 2016) is out. It includes a small contribution from myself, on Islam and social media.

Heavy Metal Egypt

al-monitor.com, How heavy metal music is causing a stir in Egypt "Nader Sadek, an Egyptian metal music performer, said on his Facebook page Jan. 7 that a Masters of the Middle East concert will be held Feb. 20 at Amoun Hotel in Giza featuring four famous metal bands: Inquisition (United States), Perversion (United Arab Emirates), Smouldering in Forgotten (Bahrain) and Al-Azif (Egypt)." The significance of this in terms of this blog is the importance of social media in promoting heavy metal music in Egypt.

Sunni Shia Splits?

Radio 4, File on 4, Sunni Shia Splits?    "Are international conflicts creating tensions between Sunni and Shia Muslims in the UK?

"Shabnam Mahmood reports from both Sunni and Shia communities and reveals how divisive messages from the Middle East are fuelling intolerance here."

I thought this was a useful programme. There was some content in relation to the role of the internet in promoting diverse agendas (and in some cases discord)

Tutlub

Katie Collins, cnet.com, Muslims seek safe haven in Tutlub social network " Tutlub, which means "to ask" in Arabic, stands in contrast to the fear that social networks have become recruitment tools for extremist groups such as ISIS. Instead, the social network is a place for Muslims to discuss their faith, seek guidance and read curated content. Hassan also wants the site to monitor and counter the spread of propaganda."

Getting the World Online

BBC, Getting the World Online "Billions of the world’s poorest people have no access to the internet. Connectivity is growing fast in many parts of the globe, but not everywhere. In large parts of Africa and South Asia, for example, the barriers to joining the information age are simply too great. So why has the Indian government just banned Facebook and others from operating free-access platforms to provide internet access? And why do some of the most influential advocates of a free-for-all internet support the Indian ban? In this week’s Newshour Extra, Owen Bennett Jones and his guests discuss why it matters that the world’s poorest are able to use the internet, and ask what can be done to achieve universal access for all?" Useful programme, worth a listen!

LinkedIn Jihadi

Telegraph, Security services hunt Jihadi John recruiter after he revealed his location on LinkedIn, 13 Feb 2016 "Birmingham terrorist Rabah Tahari inadvertently disclosed his whereabouts by joining the Linkedin professional networking site."

al-Azhar monitoring Daesh

Express, Islamic University BEATING heinous Islamic State's 'cancerous' propaganda, 11 Feb 2016 "Al-Azhar in Cairo, one of Islam’s oldest and most influential universities is combatting the vile jihadi’s slick propaganda machine by sifting through dozens of ISIS publications across eight different languages."

Malaysia - "Zahid wants better Islamic propagation via Internet"

themalaysianinsider.com, Zahid wants better Islamic propagation via Interne. 11 Feb 2016t "Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi today called for wider propagation of Islamic missionary information through the Internet to match the dissemination via the traditional media."

Islamic State 'help desk' helps members avoid internet surveillance

Telegraph, Islamic State 'help desk' helps members avoid internet surveillance "The advice is offered through a channel on encrypted messaging app Telegram, and has about 2,200 members."

Emoji 'crackdown' in Indonesia

liberation.fr, L'Indonésie interdit les emojis gays sur les applications de messagerie instantanée

Whatsapp used to fight terrorism in Islington

Islington Gazette, Whatsapp used to fight terrorism in Islington "The Angel Business Improvement District (BID) has set up a mobile phone messaging group where managers will be sent urgent police alerts and images of people in the area suspected of being extremists."

Iranians speak out over sexual harassment scandal

BBC News, Iranians speak out over sexual harassment scandal "Allegations of sexual harassment at an Iranian TV station are emboldening Iranian women to break their silence and share their experiences of a problem traditionally not acknowledged inside the country."

"Gershad"

BBC News, Iranian youth get app to dodge morality police "An anonymous team of Iranian app developers have come up with a solution to help young fashion conscious Iranians avoid the country's notorious morality police known in Persian as "Ershad" or guidance."