Online Radicalisation through the eyes of a British teenager

In an interview with the BBC, Sajid, whose name has been changed to protect his identity, talks about the devastation caused to his family after his brother Arshad had travelled to Syria to join ISIS.

 “When my bother went, I had seen the impact it had on my family. My little siblings refusing to eat, no sleep et cetera. So I knew that would be their fate again if I decided to do that. I don’t think my brother had an idea of how my family would get torn apart from his stupid decisions.”

Arshad had never shown any signs of radicalisation or of being particularly interested in the Syrian conflict. ISIS recruiters specifically instruct young people considering travel to Syria to act normally to avoid attracting suspicion.

Online Radicalisation

To find out more about how his brother had been radicalised Sajid investigated the tactics used by extremist groups online by opening a fake Twitter account and following ISIS-sympathisers.

Sajid talks of an online world that is of a delusional but self-supporting community seeking affirmation in each other. It is not dissimilar to online communities devoted to celebrating anorexia, self-harm or conspiracy theories.

Through open networks and encrypted messaging apps such as Kik, he was exposed to a constant stream of propaganda focusing on the violence of military personnel towards local residents.

However, Sajid used social media to prevent others from following in his brother’s footsteps.

He talks about a Somali girl, living in London who messaged him about going to Syria. After warning her of the dangers of joining extremist groups, she told him that she had changed her mind and wouldn’t go.

If you are concerned about a family member or loved one travelling to Syria or being radicalised online then please click here for our free and impartial advice.