Why Have Many Britons Joined ISIS

2014-08-28 50

Hundreds of British citizens have left the country to join the terrorist group ISIS and participate in its brutal acts.

Hundreds of British citizens have left the country to join the terrorist group ISIS and participate in its brutal acts.

It’s believed that one of them was involved in the beheading of American journalist James Foley.

Numerous others have been filmed burning their British passports and spouting a number of threatening messages.

The participation of young Britons in the bloody campaign has raised many questions, not the least of which is why they would identify with the extremists.

An analyst at the International Center for the Study of Radicalization proposed one theory for the placement of the British jihadists loyalties.

He said, "They've disengaged from British society, they've disengaged from British values, they've bought into something else -- a different identity."

Rather than viewing themselves as British citizens, they see their purpose as being to defend Islam.

Regardless of why they’re doing it, many feel that the consequence for participation should be the actual loss of British identity via the revoking of their passports.

Whether or not doing so is allowed by international law has become a matter of debate.