One Way Trip to Jihad: ‘At Least’ 116 Foreign Fighters Executed by ISIS for Deserting

A human-rights think-tank has reported on the large numbers of foreign converts to the Islamic State who have become disillusioned after arrival, and who have ultimately been executed by the Caliphate for trying to escape.

The British based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has made the report on the extraordinary spate of executions the newly established Caliphate has embarked upon in the first six months of its existence. The mass executions, which have in some cases been recorded and released online, have claimed at least 1,878 lives, although the Observatory believes this is an underestimate reports the Daily Mail.

It was reported in October that as many as thirty British citizens were seeking to escape the Islamic State, having found it less of a paradise than they had been promised. Although it is not known exactly how many British citizens have gone to fight Jihad with the Islamic State, one parliamentarian has said the number could be over 2,000, a figure that dwarfs the reported 30 who have since changed their minds.

Of these confirmed murders, 1,175 were civilians arbitrarily murdered. Many killed will have been executed over religious matters. Although a good number of those killed will have been Christians, even being a Muslim isn’t necessarily a saving grace in the eyes of the Islamic State. Many Muslims have been executed for apostasy, for the crime of following a slightly divergent form of the faith.

At least 930 Sunni Muslims are reported to have been executed so far.

Executions have also been used to enforce the archaic laws imposed by the Caliphate in territory it controls. People have been beheaded and stoned to death for a variety of crimes including adultery and homosexuality. A morality police enforces many of the rules specified in Sharia law, and in some areas the squads which detect and punish crime are made up of burqa-clad women. Dressing immodestly can result in harsh punishments such as whipping.

Among the murdered are the British and American citizens beheaded on camera by wanted ISIS propagandist and executioner ‘Jihadi John’, and over 500 Syrian soldiers loyal to the rump government of President Bashar al-Assad.