'Islam for Dummies.' ISIS Recruits Don't Know Much about Their Faith
Recruitment forms found in war ravaged Syria asked Islamic State applicants to rate their knowledge of Islam on a scale of one to three. Most chose "one."
An analysis by The Associated Press of thousands of leaked Islamic State documents reveals 70 percent of recruits came with only the most basic knowledge of Islam.
Twenty-four percent had "intermediate" knowledge and just 5 percent were advanced in their knowledge of Islam. Five recruits claimed to have memorized the Quran.
The documents were acquired by the Syrian opposition site Zaman al-Wasl and shared with the AP. They confirm the opinion of former CIA case officer Patrick Skinner, who says some people claim allegiance to ISIS out of religious belief, but that most who join, including those from the West, are people "reaching for a sense of belonging, a sense of notoriety, a sense of excitement. Religion is an afterthought."
A 2014 CBN News focus report showed ISIS appealing to those emotions in social media. But a dominant theme was also redemption from a sinful life.
Mohammed Ahmed and Yusuf Sarwar from Britain were typical of many Western terror recruits. The 22-year-olds had ordered "The Koran for Dummies" and "Islam for Dummies" books in preparation for their trip to join the fighting in Syria.
They were arrested on their return to Britain and convicted in 2014 of terrorism offenses.
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