ISIS fighter from Holland answers Tumblr questions
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.A Dutch citizen who says he is fighting on behalf of Isis in Syria has been answering questions about life in the self-proclaimed caliphate to spread propaganda about life under Isis.
Israfil Yilmaz, who is of Turkish descent, abandoned a career in the Royal Netherlands Army in 2013 to join Islamist rebels fighting to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad in Syria.
Yilmaz defended the recent Isis attack on Paris, which murdered 129 people, by calling it a fair response to French military action against Isis, the New York Times reports.
Explaining why he decided to join Isis, he said: "Everybody is against war until you see your own people getting slaughtered like cattle.
"I'm not only happy, but I feel blessed and honoured being here in the Islamic State."
Other questions touched on personal details of Yilmaz's life, while others asked the technical and religious aspects of fighting for Isis.
In response to the question of whether he missed his mother, Yilmaz replied: "Sometimes, yes."
One person said: "I've heard that you're not allowed to use Apple products, iPhones etc," to which Yilmaz responded: "This is true, I had to sell my wife's iPhone."
However, he also gave far darker responses, such as making jokes about gay men deserving to be "thrown off a high building" and defending the practice of Yazidi women and girls being "taken as spoils of war".
Isis has previously murdered gay men by pushing them off the top of buildings. Yazidi women and girls have described how they were beaten and gang-raped on a daily basis.
Between the questions and answers, Yilmaz uploaded photos from his daily life, including photographs of his son and propaganda images showing Isis fighters cuddling cats.
In a rare unanimous vote, the UN has called on the world to unite to "eradicate" the jihadist group.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
0Comments