This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/mar/23/fanatical-isis-duty-to-die-still-humans-in-bombers-ranks
The article has changed 2 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Previous version
1
Next version
| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| In the fanatical world of Isis, your duty is to kill and die | In the fanatical world of Isis, your duty is to kill and die |
| (5 months later) | |
| Few would have given them a second look: three men wheeling luggage trolleys through the heart of an airport in the heart of Europe. I immediately recognised Ibrahim el-Bakraoui, the stocky one in the middle. I tweeted that it was him two hours before his identity as one of the suspected suicide bombers at Brussels airport was confirmed by the authorities. El-Bakraoui’s name and picture had come up in intelligence briefings. His brother, we later discovered, killed more in his own martyrdom atrocity on the Brussels metro. | Few would have given them a second look: three men wheeling luggage trolleys through the heart of an airport in the heart of Europe. I immediately recognised Ibrahim el-Bakraoui, the stocky one in the middle. I tweeted that it was him two hours before his identity as one of the suspected suicide bombers at Brussels airport was confirmed by the authorities. El-Bakraoui’s name and picture had come up in intelligence briefings. His brother, we later discovered, killed more in his own martyrdom atrocity on the Brussels metro. |
| In the CCTV image they exude no obvious menace. Even the fact that two are each wearing one black glove – to hide the triggers for their detonators, investigators believe – might not have raised an alarm. | In the CCTV image they exude no obvious menace. Even the fact that two are each wearing one black glove – to hide the triggers for their detonators, investigators believe – might not have raised an alarm. |
| Our perception of Isis is drawn from its images: the black flag; the orange suits it condemns the condemned to wear; the executioner, face masked, knife brandished. These symbols have transferred themselves from the front pages of our newspapers and seared themselves into the minds of millions. But the jihadis, who held me hostage in Syria for 10 long months, will draw just as much satisfaction from the banal images of its three operatives in the moments before they launched yesterday’s murderous attack on Zaventem airport. | Our perception of Isis is drawn from its images: the black flag; the orange suits it condemns the condemned to wear; the executioner, face masked, knife brandished. These symbols have transferred themselves from the front pages of our newspapers and seared themselves into the minds of millions. But the jihadis, who held me hostage in Syria for 10 long months, will draw just as much satisfaction from the banal images of its three operatives in the moments before they launched yesterday’s murderous attack on Zaventem airport. |
| The terrorists are casually dressed, one almost drawing attention to himself in a white jacket and a dark beach hat, worn at an angle. But to study this picture is chilling, knowing the three are intending to kill and maim dozens of people – and themselves – and yet they are not stressed or anxious. That is because, for them, this is all about death. But the picture sends a message: that the enemy looks ordinary and walks among you. It is one of the goals of Isis to sow division and make us afraid of one another. That was one of the things I learned during my captivity. | The terrorists are casually dressed, one almost drawing attention to himself in a white jacket and a dark beach hat, worn at an angle. But to study this picture is chilling, knowing the three are intending to kill and maim dozens of people – and themselves – and yet they are not stressed or anxious. That is because, for them, this is all about death. But the picture sends a message: that the enemy looks ordinary and walks among you. It is one of the goals of Isis to sow division and make us afraid of one another. That was one of the things I learned during my captivity. |
| The death toll in Brussels was lower than in Paris, where 130 people lost their lives, but there is an enhanced significance to this latest outrage because it will change the state of mind of everyone in Europe. The Brussels attack marks the migration of terror from one country to the next. Suddenly everyone is saying: who is the terrorist, and where will they strike next – the UK? Germany? The Netherlands? | The death toll in Brussels was lower than in Paris, where 130 people lost their lives, but there is an enhanced significance to this latest outrage because it will change the state of mind of everyone in Europe. The Brussels attack marks the migration of terror from one country to the next. Suddenly everyone is saying: who is the terrorist, and where will they strike next – the UK? Germany? The Netherlands? |
| Referring to this challenge as a war is the last thing we should be saying. This is the sort of approach Isis wants | Referring to this challenge as a war is the last thing we should be saying. This is the sort of approach Isis wants |
| So who were the mysterious figures pushing airport trolleys? They were certainly committed operatives, and it now seems that some are suspected of providing logistics for the Paris attacks. But they were more cannon fodder than senior figures. Once they had performed their services in Paris, they were considered expendable. That is how Isis works in terms of human resources. | So who were the mysterious figures pushing airport trolleys? They were certainly committed operatives, and it now seems that some are suspected of providing logistics for the Paris attacks. But they were more cannon fodder than senior figures. Once they had performed their services in Paris, they were considered expendable. That is how Isis works in terms of human resources. |
| Their duty is to die when asked. The surprise is when they do not. It is in that light that we should think of Salah Abdeslam, the Paris attacker captured in Belgium last week. First in Paris and now in Brussels, he has twice refused to meet his death. Perhaps there are signs of hope in this, for it shows that if there is a weakness in Isis, it is that there are humans in its ranks. Even indoctrinated, it still takes a human being to press the button that will kill dozens of people, including him or herself. For all the brainwashing that recruits are going through – including torture and the requirement early on that they show allegiance by killing someone – the fact that humans are being asked to behave in inhuman ways represents an opportunity, if faint. | Their duty is to die when asked. The surprise is when they do not. It is in that light that we should think of Salah Abdeslam, the Paris attacker captured in Belgium last week. First in Paris and now in Brussels, he has twice refused to meet his death. Perhaps there are signs of hope in this, for it shows that if there is a weakness in Isis, it is that there are humans in its ranks. Even indoctrinated, it still takes a human being to press the button that will kill dozens of people, including him or herself. For all the brainwashing that recruits are going through – including torture and the requirement early on that they show allegiance by killing someone – the fact that humans are being asked to behave in inhuman ways represents an opportunity, if faint. |
| How we react will be absolutely crucial now, but the omens are not good. Already Manuel Valls, the French prime minister, and François Hollande, the president, have fallen into the trap of referring to this challenge as a “war”. That is the last thing they should be saying. I can tell them from my experience that this is the sort of approach Isis wants. The terrorists don’t just want to talk about a war, they hope to provoke, within Europe itself, a civil war. But this is not a war, and we must not see it as such. | How we react will be absolutely crucial now, but the omens are not good. Already Manuel Valls, the French prime minister, and François Hollande, the president, have fallen into the trap of referring to this challenge as a “war”. That is the last thing they should be saying. I can tell them from my experience that this is the sort of approach Isis wants. The terrorists don’t just want to talk about a war, they hope to provoke, within Europe itself, a civil war. But this is not a war, and we must not see it as such. |
| I prefer to call it large-scale political violence. And the important thing about that approach is that we have seen large-scale political violence before in our history. If we adopt a militaristic, warlike vocabulary, there will be no way back from that. We will only strengthen our enemies. | I prefer to call it large-scale political violence. And the important thing about that approach is that we have seen large-scale political violence before in our history. If we adopt a militaristic, warlike vocabulary, there will be no way back from that. We will only strengthen our enemies. |
| Valls and Hollande are considered to be progressive men, but they are leaders reacting to the landscape that faces them. In France, as in other countries where the right and nationalists have been gaining ground, many politicians feel the best way to counter that is to adopt their words and their ideas. But that is a big mistake. Why help the terrorists when we know they wish to divide us and to have us live in fear? | Valls and Hollande are considered to be progressive men, but they are leaders reacting to the landscape that faces them. In France, as in other countries where the right and nationalists have been gaining ground, many politicians feel the best way to counter that is to adopt their words and their ideas. But that is a big mistake. Why help the terrorists when we know they wish to divide us and to have us live in fear? |
| There will be immense pressure on Belgium now, and certainly a push for more security there. But I always come back to the words of Jens Stoltenberg, the then Norwegian prime minister, after the 2011 mass shootings by Anders Breivik. He too faced populist pressure to crack down but his response instead was to call for more democracy and freedom. | There will be immense pressure on Belgium now, and certainly a push for more security there. But I always come back to the words of Jens Stoltenberg, the then Norwegian prime minister, after the 2011 mass shootings by Anders Breivik. He too faced populist pressure to crack down but his response instead was to call for more democracy and freedom. |
| In France, we feared a backlash after the Charlie Hebdo attacks. That didn’t happen, and instead we showed strong cohesion. But since then it has become apparent just how fragile we are as a society. I am shocked by the racist utterances of politicians and the mainstream media, things that would never previously have been said or published. There is no future in that approach. | In France, we feared a backlash after the Charlie Hebdo attacks. That didn’t happen, and instead we showed strong cohesion. But since then it has become apparent just how fragile we are as a society. I am shocked by the racist utterances of politicians and the mainstream media, things that would never previously have been said or published. There is no future in that approach. |
| We should keep calm and keep things in perspective, and above all we should tackle the root cause of all this, the war in Syria. We should remember too that terrorists terrorise – with actions and with images – but even so, terrorism is still the least likely cause of anyone’s death. They want us to be afraid. We can deny them that. Better to hold tight and reaffirm our values. | We should keep calm and keep things in perspective, and above all we should tackle the root cause of all this, the war in Syria. We should remember too that terrorists terrorise – with actions and with images – but even so, terrorism is still the least likely cause of anyone’s death. They want us to be afraid. We can deny them that. Better to hold tight and reaffirm our values. |
Previous version
1
Next version