The southernmost Island of the Philippines, Minanao, has felt the presence of IS (Islamic State) groups for more than two years. It has been under the fist of Martial law for weeks and its leaders are looking to extend this martial law’s reach further still. Militant IS fighters, bomb raids and murderous government campaigns have […]
ISIS
The Battle for Mosul: Could this be it?
Mosul sits in the Northern most region of Iraq, on the grand Tigris river, the same water which flows through Baghdad 200 miles south. Historically, Mosul is little more than a trading juncture featured as Ninevah in Biblical times. Now, this seemingly unimportant city is the place where the establishment of the Islamic State Group […]
Why the threat of terror will never go away
Ayoub El Khazzani, David Ali Sonboly, Riaz Khan Ahmadzai, Medhi Nemmouche, Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel. The connection between these jihadists – who waged terror and destruction this summer – becomes vague as we dismiss the tenuous claims from ISIS that they, in fact, were part of a coherent network loyal to the caliphate. No, instead these […]
ISIS research to begin at Exeter
Experts at the University plan to collect propaganda published on the internet by Islamic State terrorists in real time in order to investigate its effect on encouraging people to commit political extremism. ISIS uses social media notoriously, with the aim of eliciting fear and promoting its ideology. Academics will analyse its usage to understand the […]
The Foreign Perspective: The danger of propaganda
One of the more entertaining items of news this week was the erecting of a giant golden statue of Chairman Mao in Tongxu county in rural China. The slightly excessive statue was erected to commemorate the former Chinese leader and the influence he had in propelling China towards modernisation. Yet it raises the issue of […]
Air strikes: A solution in Syria?
And so it came to pass, that on 2 December 2015, the House of Commons voted to increase the United Kingdom’s air strikes against IS, in order to further contribute towards the ongoing Syrian Civil War. With 397 MPs voting in support of the air strikes to the 232 who opposed the motion, and an apparent majority of the public opposing […]
Over 1,000 attend ‘Vigil for Humanity’
O ver 1,000 students and members of the public attended a candlelit vigil to remember victims of the Paris and Beirut terror attacks yesterday evening. The event, entitled ‘Vigil for Humanity’ and organised by Lizzie Swyer, took place on the Great Hall piazza. Nearly 2,000 people were believed to have been in attendance. President of […]
Eyewitness in Paris: A first-person account of Friday 13th
Saturday, 14th of November 2015 – “Paris plus vague que l’Océan”. It is with these words that Madame Bovary expressed her idealistic yearning for Paris. But, now, Paris is anything but idyllic: it is silent, still, surreal. The beautiful architecture stands in stark contrast with the terror that has crystallized the city. The terrorist attacks, for which […]
ISIS destroying history is a crime. Why is it acceptable when we do it?
The destruction of historic monuments by ISIS hit me particularly hard as an archaeologist, as such I’m glad to see that it’s received the international media attention it deserves. The destruction of the past for ideological purposes is one that does not sit well with me yet this issue is rather more morally complex than […]
Sandstorms and the balcony bunch
Here, in Jordan, I’ve discovered a new hobby in the balcony. There is this indescribable feeling, found only when sitting on the grimy plastic of a weak-legged chair and surrounded by your housemates’ damp underwear left to dry under the Jordanian desert-sun. I like staring at the same bit of road below for hours on end. I […]