Some young people are attracted to Isis because of its brutality, which makes it appear “more authentic” than al-Qa’ida, the head of Germany’s domestic intelligence agency said today.
“There is a link between the [Isis] successes so far in Iraq and the activities here in Germany and the propaganda and canvassing activities aimed at young jihadists,” said Hans-Georg Maassen, head of Germany’s BfV domestic intelligence agency.
“The Islamic State is, so to speak, the ‘in’ thing – much more attractive than the Jabhat al-Nursa, the al Qa’ida spin-off in Syria,” the BfV chief told Deutschlandfunk public radio. “What attracts people is the intense brutality, the radicalism and rigour,” he said.
At least 400 people from Germany have gone to Syria and Iraq to fight with Islamic extremist groups, Mr Maassen said.
In pictures: The rise of Isis
In pictures: The rise of Isis
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1/74 Isis fighters
Fighters of the Islamic State wave the group's flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, in Raqqa, Syria
AP
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2/74 Isis fighters
Fighters from Islamic State group sit on their tank during a parade in Raqqa, Syria
AP
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3/74 Isis fighters
Fighters from the Islamic State group pray at the Tabqa air base after capturing it from the Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria
AP
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4/74 Isis fighters
Fighters from extremist Islamic State group parade in Raqqa, Syria
AP
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5/74 Isis kidnapping
A video uploaded to social networks shows men in underwear being marched barefoot along a desert road before being allegedly executed by Isis
Getty Images
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6/74 Isis kidnapping
Haruna Yukawa after his capture by Isis
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7/74 Isis kidnapping
Khalinda Sharaf Ajour, a Yazidi, says two of her daughters were captured by Isis militants
Washington Post
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8/74 Isis fighters
Spokesperson for Isis
Vice News via Youtube
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9/74 A pro-Isis leaflet
A pro-Isis leaflet handed out on Oxford Street In London
Ghaffar Hussain
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10/74 Isis fighters
Isis Jihadists burn their passports
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11/74 Isis controls Syrian Aid
A man collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria
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12/74 Isis controls Syrian Aid
A woman collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria
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13/74 Isis controls Syrian Aid
Local civilians queue for aid administered by Isis. Since it declared a caliphate the group has increasingly been delivering services such as healthcare, and distributing aid and free fuel
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14/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi security forces detain men suspected of being militants of the Isis group in Diyala province
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15/74 Iraq crisis
Mourners carry the coffin of a Shi'ite volunteer from the brigades of peace, who joined the Iraqi army and was killed during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Samarra, during his funeral in Najaf
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16/74 Iraqi refugees
An Iraqi Shiite Turkmen family fleeing the violence in the Iraqi city of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, arrives at a refugee camp on the outskirts of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region
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17/74 Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
A photograph made from a video by the jihadist affiliated group Furqan Media via their twitter account allegedly showing Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon during Friday prayers at a mosque in Mosul. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared an Islamist caliphate in the territory under the group's control in Iraq and Syria
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18/74 Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq
Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul
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19/74 Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq
Smoke and debris go up in the air as Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul. Images posted online show that Islamic extremists have destroyed at least 10 ancient shrines and Shiite mosques in territory - the city of Mosul and the town of Tal Afar - they have seized in northern Iraq in recent weeks
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20/74 Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq
A bulldozer destroys Sunni's Ahmed al-Rifai shrine and tomb in Mahlabiya district outside of Tal Afar
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21/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi security forces celebrate after clashes with followers of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, in front of his home in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad
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22/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad
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23/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi at his home after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad
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24/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad
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25/74 Iraq crisis
A vehicle burns in front of a home of a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad
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26/74 Iraqi refugees
An Iraqi woman holds her exhausted son as over 1000 Iraqis who have fled fighting in and around the city of Mosul and Tal Afar wait at a Kurdish checkpoint in the hopes of entering a temporary displacement camp in Khazair
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27/74 Iraqi refugees
Displaced Iraqi women hold pots as they queue to receive food during the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, at an encampment for displaced Iraqis who fled from Mosul and other towns, in the Khazer area outside Irbil, north Iraq
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28/74 Isis fighters in Syria
A militant Islamist fighter waving a flag, cheers as he takes part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa. The fighters held the parade to celebrate their declaration of an Islamic "caliphate" after the group captured territory in neighbouring Iraq
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29/74 Isis fighters in Syria
Isis fighters wave flags as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province
Reuters
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30/74 Isis fighters in Syria
Isis fighters travel in a vehicle as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province
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31/74 Isis fighters in Syria
Fighters from the Isis group during a parade with a missile in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from an al-Qaida splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border
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32/74 Isis fighters in Syria
Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria
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33/74 Isis fighters in Syria
Fighters from the Isis group during a parade in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from the splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border
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34/74 Isis fighters in Syria
Isis fighters hold a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria
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35/74 Isis fighters in Syria
Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria
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36/74 Isis fighters in Syria
A member loyal to the Isis waves an Isis flag in Raqqa
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37/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi anti-government gunmen from Sunni tribes in the western Anbar province march during a protest in Ramadi, west of Baghdad. The United Nations warned that Iraq is at a "crossroads" and appealed for restraint, as a bloody four-day wave of violence killed 195 people. The violence is the deadliest so far linked to demonstrations that broke out in Sunni areas of the Shiite-majority country more than four months ago, raising fears of a return to all-out sectarian conflict
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38/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi security forces hold up a flag of the Isis group they captured during an operation to regain control of Dallah Abbas north of Baqouba, the capital of Iraq's Diyala province, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad
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39/74 Isis fighters in Iraq
Isis fighters parade in the northern city of Mosul
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40/74 Iraq crisis
Volunteers, who have joined the Iraqi army to fight against the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Isis group, demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony after completing their field training in Najaf
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41/74 Iraq crisis
Kurdish Peshmerga troops fire a cannon during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Jalawla, Diyala province
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42/74 Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference
Iraqi Prime Minister's security spokesman, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference about the latest military development in Iraq, in the capital Baghdad. Iraqi forces pressed a campaign to retake militant-held Tikrit, clashing with jihadist-led Sunni militants nearby and pounding positions inside the city with air strikes in their biggest counter-offensive so far
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43/74 A police station building destroyed by Isis fighters
An exterior view of a police station building destroyed by gunmen in Mosul city, northern Iraq. Iraq's new parliament is expected to convene to start the process of setting up a new government, despite deepening political rifts and an ongoing Islamist-led insurgency. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani issued a decree inviting the new House of Representatives to meet and form a new government
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44/74 Isis fighters in Iraq
Smoke billows from an area controlled by the Isis between the Iraqi towns of Naojul and Tuz Khurmatu, both located north of the capital Baghdad, as Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces take part in an operation to repel the Sunni militants
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45/74 Iraqi refugees
An elderly Iraqi woman is helped into a temporary displacement camp for Iraqis caught-up in the fighting in and around the city of Mosul in Khazair
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46/74 Iraqi refugees
An Iraqi Christian woman fleeing the violence in the village of Qaraqush, about 30 kms east of the northern province of Nineveh, cries upon her arrival at a community center in the Kurdish city of Arbil in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region
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47/74 Iraqi refugees
An Iraqi woman, who fled with her family from the northern city of Mosul, prays with a copy of the Quran
AP
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48/74 Isis fighters in Iraq
The body of an Isis militant killed during clashes with Iraqi security forces on the outskirts of the city of Samarra
Reuters
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49/74 Iraq crisis
Iraqi civilians inspect the damage at a market after an air strike by the Iraqi army in central Mosul
EPA
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50/74 Iraq crisis
Members of the Al-Abbas brigades, who volunteered to protect the Shiite Muslim holy sites in Karbala against Sunni militants fighting the Baghdad government, parade in the streets of the city
AP
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51/74 Iraq crisis
Shia tribesmen gather in Baghdad to take up arms against Sunni insurgents marching on the capital. Thousands have volunteered to bolster defences
AFP/Getty
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52/74 Iraq crisis
A van carrying volunteers joining Iraqi security forces against Jihadist militants. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced the Iraqi government would arm and equip civilians who volunteered to fight
AFP/Getty
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53/74 Iraq
Fighters of the Isis group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul
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54/74 Iraq
An Islamist fighter, identified as Abu Muthanna al-Yemeni from Britain (R), speaks in this still image taken undated video shot at an unknown location and uploaded to a social media website. Five Islamist fighters identified as Australian and British nationals have called on Muslims to join the wars in Syria and Iraq, in the new video released by the Isis
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55/74 Iraq
Al-Qa’ida inspired militants stand with captured Iraqi Army Humvee at a checkpoint belonging to Iraqi Army outside Beiji refinery some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of Baghdad. The fighting at Beiji comes as Iraq has asked the U.S. for airstrikes targeting the militants from the Isis group. While U.S. President Barack Obama has not fully ruled out the possibility of launching airstrikes, such action is not imminent in part because intelligence agencies have been unable to identify clear targets on the ground, officials said
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56/74 Iraq
Militants attacked Iraq's main oil refinein Baiji as they pressed an offensive that has seen them capture swathes of territory, a manager and a refinery employee said
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57/74 Iraq
Militants from the Isis group parading with their weapons in the northern city of Baiji in the in Salaheddin province
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58/74 Iraq
A smoke rises after an attack by Isis militants on the country's largest oil refinery in Beiji, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad. Iraqi security forces battled insurgents targeting the country's main oil refinery and said they regained partial control of a city near the Syrian border, trying to blunt an offensive by Sunni militants who diplomats fear may have also seized some 100 foreign workers
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59/74 Iraq
Militants of the Isis group stand next to captured vehicles left behind by Iraqi security forces at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province. For militant groups, the fight over public perception can be even more important than actual combat, turning military losses into propaganda victories and battlefield successes into powerful tools to build support for the cause
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60/74 Iraq
An injured fighter (C) from the Isis group after a battle with Iraqi soldiers at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq
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61/74 Iraq
Fighters from the Isis aiming at advancing Iraqi troops at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq
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62/74 Iraq
Fighters from the Isis group taking position at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq
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63/74 Iraq
Fighters from the Isis group inspecting vehicles of the Iraqi army after they were seized at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq
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64/74 Iraq
One Iraqi captive, a corporal, is reluctant to say the slogan, and has to be shouted at repeatedly before he obeys
Sky News
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65/74 Iraq
Iraqi captives held by the extremists
Sky News
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66/74 Iraq
Iraqi captives held by the extremists
Sky News
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67/74 Iraq
Militants of the Isis group force captured Iraqi security forces members to the transport
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68/74 Iraq
Militants of the Isis group transporting dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members to an unknown location in the Salaheddin province ahead of executing them
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69/74 Iraq
A major offensive spearheaded by Isis but also involving supporters of executed dictator Saddam Hussein has overrun all of one province and chunks of three others
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70/74 Iraq
Militants of the Isis group executing dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province
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71/74 Iraq
Isis militants taking position at a Iraqi border post on the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah
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72/74 Iraq
Isis rebels show their flag after seizing an army post
AFP/Getty Images
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73/74 Iraq
Isis militants waving an Islamist flag after the seizure of an Iraqi army checkpoint in Salahuddin
Getty Images
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74/74 Iraq
Demonstrators chant slogans as they carry al-Qa’ida flags in front of the provincial government headquarters in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. In the week since it captured Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul, a Muslim extremist group has tried to win over residents and has stopped short of widely enforcing its strict brand of Islamic law, residents say. Churches remain unharmed and street cleaners are back at work
“We have to assume... that there may well be people who return and commit attacks,” he added.
REUTERS/AP
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