The Islamic State is adocumentary created byVICE News in 2014 during the rise of the Islamic State and documented by Vice News correspondent Medyan Dairieh while he was visiting theterritory of the Islamic State for 3 weeks in which he explored areas ofRaqqa with thehisbah (Islamic State police) and explored the front lines ofSyria.[1] A trailer called "From ISIS to the Islamic State" was released on August 11, 2014.[2]
The correspondent, Medyan Dairieh, was spending three weeks in the territory of the Islamic State inRaqqa from May to June 2014, where he explored Raqqa up to theEuphrates river in which he talked to the members of the Islamic State,military of the Islamic State, and civilians under the rule of the Islamic State.[3] These were considered planned trips and Dairieh was there with the permission of the Islamic State which was considered surprising by many.[4]
One of the members of the Islamic State that was a guide to the Euphrates was Islamic Statepress officerAbu Mosa, who gained attention after being filmed by VICE News.[5] Through their guide on thebanks of the Euphrates, a propaganda vehicle that was used inpropaganda by the Islamic State showed up and revealed how kids are used in the Islamic State, in the various clips shown in the documentary, the kids,teenagers tochildren, showed love for the Islamic State and the so-calledcaliph,Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.[6] During these interviews near the Euphrates, they talked about how the inside of the Islamic State worked withchild recruitment, where kids under the age of 15 were sent toSharia camp, an organized learning environment aboutIslam,Salafism, andJihadism, and kids above the age of 15 were sent to military camps to learn about fighting and basic weapons training, specifically with theAK-47.[7]
The driver of the propaganda van was an Australian-born Jihadist namedKhaled Sharrouf who joined ISIS (before it was the Islamic State) in December of 2013, he was interviewed with his son where he pressured his son to say pro-ISIS answers to the interviewer.[8] The van was called the "preaching van" which espousedQu'ran verses from the megaphones on top and also preachedWahhabi ideologies.[9] Those who interviewed VICE in the area of Raqqa about the children stated that the children were a "generation ofJihad" and loved the so-calledcaliphate.[10] Through the tour of Raqqa, they talked about their hatred forTurkey, especially for cutting off the dam to Raqqa andMosul of the Euphrates, theFree Syrian Army, andAl-Nusra Front.[11]
Then he explored areas of Raqqa with thehisbah (Islamic State police), whose patrol leader was Abu Obida, who explained his purpose to establish the caliphate in the way of the Prophet Mohammed,[12] and ordered traders to remove a poster showinginfidels and a man to change the fabric on his wife's veil.[13]
The Washington Post called the documentary 'impressive' in an article released by them.[14]Business Insider called the documentary amazing and talked about how it showed the violence and the recruitment by the Islamic State.[15] The legality of how VICE News gained access and the trust of the Islamic State was heavily questioned and criticized due to the fact it can be seen as illegal.[1]
In 2014, the documentary won VICE News aPeabody Award.[16] VICE News was one of the multiple news, radio and podcast winners for 2014.[17] The winners were released on April 20, 2015.[18]
