2022 'ASTORS' SHOWCASE EDITION September 2022 ISSUE 63 | Page 28

spersed in the ISIS pitch is the notion that a caliphate-based life will be exciting and mean- ingful .

www . AmericanSecurityToday . com September 2022 - Edition 63

An ISIS-based life , the pitch con- tinues , is better than what life in their home country affords . Iraqi soldiers found children , in- cluding toddlers , in Mosul and elsewhere who were believed to be orphans .

A policy challenge exists as to how to rehabilitate the thou- sands of ISIS widows and their children based in Syria and else- where .

Determining whether such in- dividuals still hold pro-ISIS views is a daunting challenge .

For some , their allegiance to the movement will not dissipate . Their zeal for jihad continues after resettling in the West or another region . Also , discerning which individuals holding such perspectives would become ter- rorists is not facile .

The physical and mental harm these children suffered in the caliphate and later war zones could make reintegrating them into civil society difficult . Some youngsters might be irredeem- able from the throngs of their troubled past .

The roles of widows and other females in the terrorism context merit further scrutiny . These survivors may undertake terror operations to avenge the deaths of their fallen kin , usually hus- bands and brothers .

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