Military Review English Edition March-April 2016 | Page 31

ISLAMIC STATE ACTIONS

IS’s actions as abhorrent and un-Islamic—is horrified
by what it sees. So, how does IS justify what it does?
This article will explore this question by examining the
commentary IS offers on events in its online magazine,
Dabiq, and conclude by evaluating IS’s justification.

Islamic State
IS is an Islamist organization; Islamist movements
are those that aspire to use the Quran and the deeds
and sayings of the prophet Muhammad (the latter two
are collectively known as the sunnah) as the basis for
organizing society. Islamists regard the Quran and sunnah as revelations of God’s will and believe that most
countries that call themselves Muslim are far from
adhering to them. Those countries failing to implement
Muslim law (sharia) are instead seen as corrupt, guided
by leaders who have defiled themselves through contact
with non-Muslim nations of the West. Consequently,
IS believes that reordering society in accordance with
the God-given tenets revealed in the Quran and the
sunnah is the antidote for the moral bankruptcy of
Western society.
Their belief in the inerrancy of the Quran as God’s
word to man is a primary aspect of IS’s nature as a fundamentalist group. Fundamentalist interpretations of
religion generally include the following characteristics:
Its members are seen as “real” believers in contrast to surrounding societies and to members of their
faith who hold views different from their own.
Democracy is rejected in favor of a state in which
religious law is implemented.
The days when their faith began are seen to be
ideal and therefore serve as a model for how things
should be now.
Modern religious scholarship is rejected.
Only a literal interpretation of what are seen as
inerrant foundational texts is seen to be valid.
Its members hold apocalyptic beliefs—the end
times are seen to be near.
Fundamentalist Islamists wish to spread their
faith together with the associated Islamic political
system worldwide.

summarizes what IS sees as its mission: the establishment of an Islamic state by force of arms, or jihad (holy
war). To justify its position, it quotes the Quran: “Say to
those who disbelieve … And fight them, so that sedition
might end and the only religion will be that of Allah”
(8:38-9).2 In the second volume of the magazine, the
establishment of such a state is seen to be a multinational mission: “We must confront them [people] with
the fact that they’ve turned away from religion, while
we hold onto it … we’re completely ready to stand in
the face of anyone who attempts to divert us from our
commitment to making the religion of Allah triumphant over all other religions, and that we will continue
to fight the people of deviation and misguidance until

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Islamic State’s Fundamentalist
Mission
Articles in Dabiq evince all such fundamentalist
characteris tics.1 An article in the first edition of Dabiq
MILITARY REVIEW  March-April 2016

Dabiq is the title of the official propaganda publication of the Islamic State (IS). It is an online magazine
that promulgates IS ideology, policies, and objectives
while also serving as a platform for grandiose threats
against the West and other perceived enemies of IS
such as Shia Muslims, Yazidis, and Jews. First published in July 2014 in several languages, including
English, it uses sophisticated Western-style photo imagery and advertising techniques specifically aimed
at recruiting young disaffected audiences. In doing
so, it features lurid photos of the torture and execution of those described as IS opponents. Dabiq takes
its name from a small town in northern Syria where,
Islamic tradition holds, the apocalyptic final battle
between Muslims and Christians will take place that
results in a Muslim victory and ushers in the end of
the secular world and a new Muslim world order.

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