By: Raja Razek,Nick Paton Walsh, and Nick Thompson
Source: CNN news
http://www.cnn.com/2014/08/28/world/meast/syria-isis-atrocities-boy/index.html?iid=article_sidebar
Members of ISIS, a
Sunni terror group, have been forcing young children to learn the ways of their
group. According to a 13 year old boy named Mohammed, who fled to Turkey for
safety, they would be forced to go to a camp, where they were taught
everything. They would wake up early, jog, eat breakfast, learn the Quran and
the Hadith of the Prophet, then they would take courses on weapons and other
military equipment. Some of the militants from ISIS were nice and would joke
around with the young boys, but some were cruel and would force them to watch
disturbing things. "They used to
bring young [kids] to the camp to lash them," Mohammed says. "When we
go to the mosque, they order us to come the next day at a specific time and
place to [watch] heads cut off, lashings or stonings. We saw a young man who
did not fast for Ramadan, so they crucified him for three days, and we saw a
woman being stoned [to death] because she committed adultery” (1).
The
young boys that were brought to this camp were too young to understand that
what they were being taught was very wrong. In the video below, it shows a child
about 4/5 years old. When asked what he would do to infidels, he said he would
kill them. Another child is shown in the video, probably around the same age,
shooting an AK-47. It is unfair to these boys that they are being fed wrong and
violent ideas. If their parents were to not send them to this camp, they would
be be-headed, so it was as if they had no choice. Mohammed and his father got
very lucky, but they live in fear of ISIS. Mohammed’s father taught him that
religion is not about fighting, but about love and forgiveness, and I agree
100% with that statement.
This
information is important for the public’s awareness because what is being done
in the Middle East by this terror group is inhumane, unfair, frightening, and
cruel and if ISIS were to ever become even more powerful, it is a threat and
danger to us all. ISIS is spreading all throughout the Middle East as we speak,
with a murderous drive to convert any non-Muslim who stand in their way, no
matter what age group they stand in. And if one refuses to convert, they have
no issue in murdering the non-Muslim, as we have already seen in the gloating
videos of young boys in training.
LINK TO VIDEO: http://www.cnn.com/video/data/2.0/video/world/2014/08/28/pkg-paton-walsh-isis-children.cnn.html
I believe this event was worth mentioning. The article tries to inform the viewers about the suffering children are experiencing. It was helpful that you were able to talk about the story from Mohammed’s perspective. I think you helped raise awareness about the inhumanities that take place. It was useful that the article explained the form of disturbing events the children are encountering.
ReplyDeleteSuch a moving article! This was a extremely great choice. The part where the non-Muslim does not wish to convert so he or she gets beheaded is extremely gruesome but important to notify the audience and mention the tragedies that have been happening lately. Excellent article choice Talar, this was something I had no idea about but now I am fully aware.
ReplyDeleteThis was an excellent choice of an article. People should be aware of what is going on in the Middle East, and you did an awesome job informing them. It was important that you brought up actual evidence. Also, the words you used for the article did an excellent job in setting the mood and tone.
ReplyDeleteTalar, your summary and analysis on this heartbreaking news article was extremely difficult to read. This is not due to any shortcomings in your style of writing, but to the tragic topic at hand. It brought to mind scenes from The Kite Runner, when the Taliban executed such disgusting inhumanities. It is even more frightening to learn how often history repeats itself. This article, complete with your blog post, successfully sheds light on the issue. I was especially affected by your mention of Mohammed’s father’s take on religion. In the midst of a turbulent, war-torn world, it may be easy to accept the chaos that envelopes us without question, forgetting the most important of human values: love and forgiveness.
ReplyDeleteAfter reading this summary, I do not know whether to applaud you on this wonderful analysis of the article or bow my head in shame of what the world has come to. Your analysis is wonderful and has amazing wording. It pains me that humanity has reached such a low in some places around the world. Thank you for bringing light to this issue and urging people to watch the video that plays along with it. I am also happy that you put your input in when mentioning what religion is all about.
ReplyDeleteSuch an intriguing choice of topic, Talar! I love how your summary of the article uses the emotional appeal, pathos, because it helped captivate my ultimate attention and keep it throughout the post. I was so dazed whilst reading your post that I did not realize it was over until I reached the comments section. Outstanding work, Talar!
ReplyDeleteTalar, your post is moving and uses pathos exceptionally to describe Isis’s terrible offenses. I like how you described the video and not only the article. You infused your opinion into your post refreshingly to give your perspective on the topic. Your post has effectively chosen details and is overall nicely written.
ReplyDeleteReading this was absolutely heart breaking. It is beyond wrong and cruel to have children of such young age exposed to torture and murder of others. These young boys can be easily persuaded that the doings of ISIS are what is right and fair. Talar I completely agree with you that the news of this travesty must be spread and the men of ISIS must be stopped before poisoning the minds of any more children or the new generations.
ReplyDeleteIt was truly agonizing to read this article and synopsis. It is extremely frightening and utterly distressing to know that sickening proceedings like this occur and groups like this exist in this day and age. Your analysis, on the other hand, is agreeable and properly written and organized. With choosing this article to analyze, you suitably brought the topic to consciousness. Everyone should be aware of the atrocities that are occurring in the Middle East.
ReplyDeleteTalar outstanding job on this blog! While reading what you wrote you made me realize how blessed I am to live in such a safe environment while young boys are being taught to kill. This is unfair and it makes me sad because young boys around the age of four or five should be learning in schools and playing sports while some are living in utmost fear and killing people. Thank you Talar for bringing this topic to our awareness because ISIS must be stopped.
ReplyDelete