“Sense of belonging”Virginia man driven to join ISIS because it gave him a “sense of belonging”: Judge

Published 1 September 2016

Seven young men arrested in Virginia for planning to join ISIS have been described in court as struggling to find work or finish school. “ISIS has done a good job projecting that they are not just about violence,” says one expert. “They know that they’re going to appeal to the young person who’s just pissed off and has had a bad deal. But they also want the dreamer, the North American converts who are virtually clueless about Islam but are beguiled by this fantasy that they’ve bought into.” Joseph Farrokh, 29, who in July was sentenced to 8.5 years in prison, wrote the Judge that ultimately he was attracted to the terror group because its propaganda gave him a “sense of belonging.”

Several of the young men arrested in Virginia for planning to join ISIS have been described in court as struggling to find work or finish school. Joseph Farrokh, 29, who in July was sentenced to 8.5 years in prison — only Farrokh has pleaded guilty; the other six cases are pending —  wrote the Judge that ultimately he was attracted to the terror group because its propaganda gave him a “sense of belonging.”

Here are the opening paragraphs from Rachel Weiner, “A need for ‘belonging’ led Virginia man to the Islamic State” (Washington Post, 1 September 2016)

First he was a cross-wearing Christian. Then he billed himself as an Italian from New Jersey with slicked-back hair and a fondness for “The Godfather.” After that, he tried to pass himself off as a Mexican who drank Corona and cooked carne asada.

But it was Joseph Farrokh’s last transformation — into a radical Muslim with plans to join the Islamic State — that has landed him in prison for the next eight years. He was among seven young men from Northern Virginia prosecuted on similar charges this year alone, raising concerns about both a potential rise in radicalization and a policing approach that relies heavily on undercover agents or informants posing as radicals.

Another, Mahmoud Elhassan, a student and licensed cabdriver, is accused of pushing Farrokh toward terror. Haris Qamar was a gamer with aspirations in banking when he was accused of helping make a propaganda video urging attacks on the Capitol. Mohamed Jalloh was a National Guardsman before he allegedly bought a gun in preparation for a Fort Hood-style massacre. Others charged were a police officer, a man who studied justice administration and a pot-smoking drifter.

Together, their cases are a stark example of the challenges law enforcement face as they try to uncover threats from a terror group skilled at reaching out online to attract supporters — some of whom may seem unlikely converts — then sorting out which of those people are actually a danger.

ISIS has done a good job projecting that they are not just about violence,” said John Horgan, an expert in terrorism research at Georgia State University. “They know that they’re going to appeal to the young person who’s just pissed off and has had a bad deal. But they also want the dreamer, the North American converts who are virtually clueless about Islam but are beguiled by this fantasy that they’ve bought into.”

Several of the young men arrested in Virginia have been described in court as struggling to find work or finish school. Farrokh, who discussed traveling to Syria to fight for the Islamic State, ultimately wrote to a judge that he was attracted to the terror group because its propaganda gave him a “sense of belonging.”