2/7/2015
Women’s Role Is Limited to Staying Home, IS Followers Say
BEIRUT – The “fundamental function” of a woman is to stay at home with her husband and children, according to the followers of the Islamic State jihadist group, who also believe that girls can be legitimately wed at the age of nine.
These ideas were described in a document entitled “Women of the Islamic State: Manifesto and Case Study,” released by the all-women al-Khanssaa Brigade, which included a disclaimer informing that it was not an official IS statement.
There is little data available about the women who make up the al-Khanssaa Brigade. Information on this group is based on what can be gleaned from message exchanges between members through social networking websites or from this manifesto.
The IS’ propaganda presents a fictitious image of harmony to attract females to join the “Caliphate.”
Reality, however, shows that the jihadists exercise brutal practices in the territories under their control, such as stoning women for committing adultery and sexually enslaving their Christian and Yazidi women prisoners.
In the manifesto, a number of guidelines regarding women’s role in society are laid out.
For example, the document dictates that women are allowed to receive limited education for the sole purpose of raising their children, who must be groomed in the study of Islamic Shari’a law.
The text declares that girls between the ages of seven and nine should attend classes on Islamic law, the Quran, mathematics and general knowledge.
Between the ages of 12 and 13, their studies should focus more on religion, with a special emphasis on Islamic laws related to marriage and divorce, besides other subjects such as cooking.
The manifesto added that women should not work, except in some specific cases, such as the fields of medicine and education or the carrying out of Jihad (holy war) if their country is attacked by an enemy and the number of male combatants proves insufficient to defeat said foe.
The document painted a poetic picture of the fulfilling life awaiting those who migrate to areas under the IS’ control, such as Al Raqqa, the organization’s main stronghold in Syria.
However, it seems that this description does not correspond with reality, according to the testimonies by several women, who had allegedly traveled to join IS in Syria and Iraq, published on Twitter.
Their tweets often speak of the loss of their husbands on the battlefield and the difficulties they faced after migrating to the Islamic State’s so-called “Caliphate.”
A suspected female jihadist, identified as Um Leith, wrote on a Tumblr blog that it had been difficult to give up a life of comfort and renounce her family in her country of origin, adding that one of the worst moments for a migrant is calling her parents for the first time after crossing the borders.
Although there are several women on Twitter who encourage migration to IS-controlled areas, examples abound of women identifying themselves as “reverse migrants” on social networking websites.
Very little details are known about the reasons that forced them to return to their countries of origin after having migrated to Syria and Iraq.
Based on the information about living conditions in the “Caliphate,” it becomes hard to imagine the kinds of exploitation they were subjected to at the hands of the Islamic State.
source
Women’s Role Is Limited to Staying Home, IS Followers Say
BEIRUT – The “fundamental function” of a woman is to stay at home with her husband and children, according to the followers of the Islamic State jihadist group, who also believe that girls can be legitimately wed at the age of nine.These ideas were described in a document entitled “Women of the Islamic State: Manifesto and Case Study,” released by the all-women al-Khanssaa Brigade, which included a disclaimer informing that it was not an official IS statement.
There is little data available about the women who make up the al-Khanssaa Brigade. Information on this group is based on what can be gleaned from message exchanges between members through social networking websites or from this manifesto.
The IS’ propaganda presents a fictitious image of harmony to attract females to join the “Caliphate.”
Reality, however, shows that the jihadists exercise brutal practices in the territories under their control, such as stoning women for committing adultery and sexually enslaving their Christian and Yazidi women prisoners.
In the manifesto, a number of guidelines regarding women’s role in society are laid out.
For example, the document dictates that women are allowed to receive limited education for the sole purpose of raising their children, who must be groomed in the study of Islamic Shari’a law.
The text declares that girls between the ages of seven and nine should attend classes on Islamic law, the Quran, mathematics and general knowledge.
Between the ages of 12 and 13, their studies should focus more on religion, with a special emphasis on Islamic laws related to marriage and divorce, besides other subjects such as cooking.
The manifesto added that women should not work, except in some specific cases, such as the fields of medicine and education or the carrying out of Jihad (holy war) if their country is attacked by an enemy and the number of male combatants proves insufficient to defeat said foe.
The document painted a poetic picture of the fulfilling life awaiting those who migrate to areas under the IS’ control, such as Al Raqqa, the organization’s main stronghold in Syria.
However, it seems that this description does not correspond with reality, according to the testimonies by several women, who had allegedly traveled to join IS in Syria and Iraq, published on Twitter.
Their tweets often speak of the loss of their husbands on the battlefield and the difficulties they faced after migrating to the Islamic State’s so-called “Caliphate.”
A suspected female jihadist, identified as Um Leith, wrote on a Tumblr blog that it had been difficult to give up a life of comfort and renounce her family in her country of origin, adding that one of the worst moments for a migrant is calling her parents for the first time after crossing the borders.
Although there are several women on Twitter who encourage migration to IS-controlled areas, examples abound of women identifying themselves as “reverse migrants” on social networking websites.
Very little details are known about the reasons that forced them to return to their countries of origin after having migrated to Syria and Iraq.
Based on the information about living conditions in the “Caliphate,” it becomes hard to imagine the kinds of exploitation they were subjected to at the hands of the Islamic State.
source
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