Could it be that the leader of the terror group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, is concerned about the Islamic State’s image? It’s hard to tell, but one thing will not change, and that’s the number of executions being carried out.
Several Arabic language media reports on Saturday quoted the Islamic State Media as saying the ISIS chief has called for a ban on releasing footage of beheadings carried out by the terror group. In a statement reportedly sent to ISIS media offices in Syria and Iraq, Baghdadi explained the ban was meant “to be considerate of Muslims and children’s feelings who may find these scenes grotesque.”
The ban comes just days after the release of two horrific videos showing scenes of children carrying out executions. In one of the videos, a young boy of about 10 years of age is seen using a knife to decapitate a Syrian Army officer. While an older ISIS militant looks on, the boy then calmly places the head on the corpse’s back.
According to Haaretz, the Kurdish news agency ARA is saying some ISIS followers are rejecting the edict, saying the videos are a powerful tool used to intimidate the group’s enemies. It is unclear exactly when Baghdadi issued the edict banning execution videos, but it is speculation that it occurred in the past few weeks.
The Islamic State group’s graphic videos first caught the world’s attention in 2014, when “Jihadi John,” a black-clad militant was seen executing captives, including John Sotloff. Other videos have glorified the group’s depravity, showing the many gruesome ways they have devised to kill people.
