Al Baghdadi Full Transcript

 

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Baghdadi said to the Americans: 'See you in New York'. They thought: What is he talking about? Because of course they had no idea who he was.

 

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This is the only moving picture that exists of him ... Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the mysterious leader of the Islamic State.

 

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The peace of Allah be with you.

 

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Al-Baghdadi has only once appeared in public. And after that never again.

 

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For his followers he is the long awaited successor to the prophet. Al-Baghdadi, leader of a holy war in the caliphate with two faces.

 

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It's the same thing we saw with the Taliban in Afghanistan ...They have a telephone number, they have a Twitter account: you can reach them.

 

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Sinjar in northern Iraq, has only recently been recaptured from IS. In the last year, the troops of IS caliph al-Baghdadi dug defense tunnels throughout the city, just as they have now done in Raqqa, the capital of the caliphate. There’s no longer much left of the city itself.

 

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Did you see it with you own eyes?

Yes, they fled to Talqasab and there they were killed right in front of me.

 

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After a long struggle,  Sinjar is one of the first major cities that IS has had to give up. After their retreat, the horrendous consequences of their reign of terror became clear. Mass open graves filled with bodies... the remains of anyone who did not share their beliefs.

 

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They captured my cousin's wife. Since then, we have heard nothing from her.

 

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The terrorists of al-Baghdadi have expended the battleground of the caliphate into Europe. Who is driving this war and how should we respond to terror? Loretta Napoleoni is an expert in the field of terrorist organizations, and author of the book The Return of the Caliphate.

 

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Al-Baghdadi wants to be portrayed as the religious leader of this new nation. But unlike, somebody like Khomeini, for example he doesn't want to show his face all the time. On the contrary, he is clearly against the cult of the personality.

 

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We praise Allah and beg him to forgive our sins.

 

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 Al-Baghdadi wants to be an invisible leader. For his followers, this only increases his appeal.

 

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Baghdadi claims to be blood related to the Prophet. So he is from the bloodline of the Prophet. But this is something that many people say, so I doubt it.

 

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But is it important for his followers?

 

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Yes, of course, I think it is important for his legitimacy. It gives him tremendous legitimacy among those who believe it. It is part of the strategy. The less you know about one of the icons, because he is an icon, the more you believe that this icon is exactly as you want him to be.

 

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Al-Baghdadi has become one of the world's most prominent fundamentalist leaders, even bigger than Bin Laden. Declaring a religious caliphate is seen as a tactical masterstroke, creating a country with a genuine capital, Raqqa, and capturing the imagination of followers worldwide.

 

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The caliphate is the most important thing for al-Baghdadi, and all others.

 

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Why is it so exceptional?

 

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For al-Qaida, the caliphate was the end of the road. They believed, 'We will fight against the far away enemy, and then we will move to the near enemy, and then we will build the caliphate'.

 

 

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Here, the caliphate is the beginning of the story. So the caliphate becomes a weapon for the jihad. We start with from caliphate and then the caliphate will carry on the jihad.

 

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Here you can see a soldier of IS.

 

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This is Hani, born and raised in Raqqa. This summer he fled from the capital of the caliphate. He could no longer stay in his hometown after IS took hold.

 

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IS has plunged the city into darkness. Suddenly, all women had to be dressed in black. On the street, I couldn't recognize my own wife or mother any more.

 

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They beat men and women on the street. Women were stoned. People were thrown from rooftops.

 

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Violence is always fundamental for terrorism. Terrorism uses violence to control people. The more frightened you are, the stronger the enemy is in your opinion.

 

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It is not only in Raqqa that the lives of citizens are in danger.  Even outside the Caliphate of Al-Baghdadi, its opponents are being threatened. Germany is where most of the Syrian refugees have sought refuge. Here we meet Ahmed, who has just escaped from Raqqa.

 

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If you do not go to the mosque to pray, you get harshly punished. You're meant to accept their ideology but I could not.

 

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Ahmed is of the same faith as IS, but he opposes their methods. When he was called upon to fight, he went into hiding. This earned him a death sentence, which was sent to his parents.

 

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I have the death sentence here on my phone. Here is my name and that I live in Raqqa. And that I am condemned for apostasy.

 

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If you want to survive in the caliphate, there is only ONE choice: join the jihad.

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Interestingly enough, the American invasion of Iraq fueled the idea of a holy war. Al-Baghdadi was captured by the Americans and held for five years at Camp Bucca, a hotbed of jihadists and the scene of regular violent riots.

 

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In Camp Bucca he was held at the same time as many former senior officers

of Saddam Hussein's army and intelligence.

 

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- So he made many contacts.

- I think so.

 

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In Camp Bucca endless discussions took place about how the new state

would have to be organized  when they would all got out of prison. During this process, it was decided that al-Baghdadi was the perfect leader because he was kind of an icon. He had the perfect background to be presented as the new caliph.

 

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We will chase them, wherever they may hide.

We will find them, anywhere in the world, and we will punish them.

 

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Since the terror in Paris, Raqqa, the capital of the caliphate,  has been the main target of French and Russian bombs.

 

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- Can you hear me?

- Yes.

 

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People are mostly afraid of the Russian planes, especially after they bombed a mosque recently. A lot of people were killed.

 

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Hani is praying for the defeat of IS. But at the same time he is worried about his family and friends in Raqqa.

 

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It is difficult to support the bombing. But it is also difficult to be against it. Me and others find it difficult to support the attacks because we have lost a lot of people.

 

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In the northern Iraqi town of Sinjar, some residents are daring to return to their homes, or what is left of them. But most are staying away because IS forces are still less than 2 km away from the city. Precautionary roadblocks are being constructed  everywhere.

 

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After Paris, IS has become the epitome of evil for many people. However, beyond the widespread fear, there are those trying to find solutions to the suffering. Dutchman Jeffrey Jonkers is involved in negotiations with the Caliphate on behalf of a British aid organization.

 

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In the West, ISIS is seen as a terrorist organization that sows death and destruction. Can you negotiate with that?

 

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ISIS are killers, it is a gruesome organization. That is always at the forefront of our minds. This is an organization who you don't want to negotiate with.  These are people you do not want to sit at a table with.  But if you get a request from Syrian citizens who are in fear for the lives it would be extremely arrogant to say no, we will not talk to a terrorist organization. You have to be honest say you need to help those people.

 

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Thanks to the negotiations with the IS,  Jonkers recently succeeded in providing protection for a group of Christians. It also appears the caliphate has a pragmatic side.

 

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At one point IS decided that the Christians had to go. But thanks to the negotiations they are still there, and they can still sell their agricultural goods on the market. So, if there is a community that is good at producing food then that's a pragmatic reason for other communities even ISIS, to say: Let them stay. We need them.

 

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In the meantime, the bombing continues. It has been a while since anything has been heard from the Caliph Al-Baghdadi. Perhaps he is dead. Nobody knows. Maybe it doesn't matter.

 

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Do you notice in your dealings that al-Baghdadi, the great leader, plays a role in everyday life?

 

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No. People do not really know about him. Especially those who do not live in Raqqa but live a bit further out in regular Syrian cities and villages. He is not their leader, they have no real connection with him.

 

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- Please take your luggage out.

- It is an awkward situation for all of us. What we're going to do now: One bag is already off the plane, the other is being looked for.

 

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IS wants death and destruction but also to sow fear. And they seem to be succeeding. This plane is forced to abandon take-off because of two passengers behaving suspiciously. It is eventually declared a  false alarm, but the incident is a small example of the fear that reigns here.

 

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During the coming months the general opinion will be, that IS is a huge juggernaut,    an unpredictable organization.

 

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An organization that we should bomb, and you say that's dangerous.

 

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And that's dangerous. Because it makes no sense. You can't bomb an ideology. If you try to bomb an ideology it's a huge risk, and the most likely outcome is that you only reinforce that ideology.

 

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If we kill al-Baghdadi, there will be a new caliph. Al-Baghdadi is not the state. Al-Baghdadi is the icon of the state. They are symbols.

 

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There will be new symbols.

 

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There'll be new symbols. There will be a new caliph.

 

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- New al-Baghdadi's.

- Exactly.