FEATURES OF DAESH TERRORIST PROPAGANDA

Abstract

The article is devoted to an analysis of the propaganda machine of the international terrorist organization Daesh (Islamic State, IS, ISIS, ISIL), examining the factors that contributed to the formation of a propaganda system that proved more sophisticated, effective, and distinct than that of other terrorist organizations. Propaganda played a central role in the activities of the Islamic State, facilitating the recruitment of new members, the justification of violence, and the consolidation of its ideological foundation. Its core elements included the dissemination of jihadist, Salafist, and Takfiri ideology, the promotion of hatred toward other religions and nations, and the construction of a myth of invincibility. Daesh relied on its own “scientists” and “scholars,” as well as on information and communication technologies, the internet, social media, various open and closed platforms, hacker networks, professionally produced films, and high-quality printed magazines. Under the guise of Islam, it in fact turned against the Islamic faith and engaged in religious and political extremism and terrorism.
Although Daesh presented itself as a defender of oppressed Muslims, in reality it preached violence in the name of religion and declared as infidels all Muslims – Shiites, Sunnis, and others – who did not accept its interpretation, subjecting them
to ruthless persecution. Although the group’s human, financial, military, and territorial resources largely disappeared, first in 2017 and then in 2019, Daesh continues to exist today in the form of dispersed cells and retains the capacity to inflict harm.