{"id":16226,"date":"2013-07-31T05:30:11","date_gmt":"2013-07-31T09:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/?p=16226"},"modified":"2013-07-30T20:36:40","modified_gmt":"2013-07-31T00:36:40","slug":"al-qaeda-works-on-its-image","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/geneveith\/2013\/07\/al-qaeda-works-on-its-image\/","title":{"rendered":"Al-Qaeda works on its image"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Al-Qaeda has an image problem.\u00a0 So to improve its PR in its campaign to take over Syria, the terrorist organization has started holding church-social type events, including picnics for families, tug-of-war games, and ice cream eating contests.\u00a0 Al-Qaeda is circulating videos of these family-friendly activities, replacing the old videos of public executions.<\/p>\n

From Loveday Morris, Al-Qaeda tries to soften image with ice cream \u2013 The Washington Post<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The jovial tug o\u2019 war and children\u2019s ice-cream-eating contest wouldn\u2019t look out of place at any town fair. But the family festivities in the battle-scarred Syrian city of Aleppo had a surprising organizer: al-Qaeda.<\/p>\n

The media arm of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, an al-Qaeda affiliate, has been churning out videos featuring community gatherings in Syria during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan as the group battles to win hearts and minds. It is a far cry from the organization\u2019s usual fare of video offerings, which includes public executions.<\/p>\n

\n

The attempt to soften Islamic State\u2019s image comes as it struggles to win support in the areas of Syria that are outside government control. Many residents view the group as a foreign force more concerned with imposing Islamic law than with fighting against President Bashar al-Assad and his allies.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are well aware that people out there on principle don\u2019t like lots of foreign fighters coming in to fight jihad in their country. They are aware they need to reassure people their presence isn\u2019t negative,\u201d said Charles Lister, an analyst at IHS Jane\u2019s Terrorism and Insurgency Center. \u201cRamadan parties and ice-cream-eating competitions are one localized example of that. Whether they will be successful remains to be seen, will depend on other armed groups and how they portray them.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p><\/div>\n<\/blockquote><\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Al-Qaeda has an image problem.\u00a0 So to improve its PR in its campaign to take over Syria, the terrorist organization has started holding church-social type events, including picnics for families, tug-of-war games, and ice cream eating contests.\u00a0 Al-Qaeda is circulating videos of these family-friendly activities, replacing the old videos of public executions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1281,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[46],"tags":[117,2691,1823],"class_list":["post-16226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-terrorism","tag-al-qaeda","tag-propaganda","tag-public-relations"],"yoast_head":"\nAl-Qaeda works on its image<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Al-Qaeda has an image problem.\u00a0 So to improve its PR in its campaign to take over Syria, the terrorist organization has started holding 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