The Caliph P1: Foundation | Featured Documentary

The Caliph - Part 1: Foundation - Featured Documentary

For almost 13 centuries, from the death of the Prophet Muhammad in 632 to the overthrow of the last Ottoman caliph in 1924, the Islamic world was ruled by a caliph.

Translated from the Arabic ‘Khalifa’, the word ‘caliph’ means successor or deputy. The caliph was considered the successor to the Prophet Muhammad.

It is a term that has, at times, been abused.

In June 2014, a militant group calling itself the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (known as ISIL or ISIS) declared the establishment of a caliphate and proclaimed its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, a caliph. This proclamation was rejected by the overwhelming majority of the world’s Muslims.

ISIL had attempted to appropriate a title imbued with religious and political significance – and in doing so had cast a dark shadow over a rich history.

This is the story of the caliph, a title that originated 1,400 years ago and that spanned one of the greatest empires the world has ever known.

In this episode of the Caliph, Al Jazeera tells the story of the caliphate, providing a fascinating insight into how the first caliphs of Islam built and expanded their empire.

Director: Husein Alrazzaz

Muslim Protesters in London Call for Caliphate

Brigitte Gabriel: The Truth About Islam, the Qur'an, Muhammad & Allah. The World Caliphate Is Coming

The Four Caliphs (World Service, 1997)

The first four caliphs of the Rashidun Caliphate.

Inside The Heart Of The IS Caliphate

Worlds Apart: Anjem Choudary on the Islamic Caliphate

The beheading of journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff by the Islamic State sparked shock and outrage. What’s driving the ideology and rise of one of the world’s most notorious terrorist organisations, and will its Caliphate ever be able to coexist peacefully with the community of nations? Oksana is joined by Anjem Choudary, British imam and lawyer, to reflect on these issues.

Inside The Heart Of The IS Caliphate

The Head of the Snake: A look at the secretive leader of the Islamic State

The Children Brainwashed To Become Jihadis

Children Of The Caliphate: A look at the horrific cruelty of Islamic State as they recruit a new generation of Jihadis.

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Why Are Kurds Joining Up With ISIS?

Kurds Of The Caliphate: Turkish PM blames Ankara bombing on Islamic State.

How Assad And The Kurds Are Teaming Up Against ISIS

Children of the ‘Caliphate’

WARNING! This Channel 4 video contains gruesome, disturbing, graphic images. ISIS is the embodiment of EVIL.

Syria Blame-game: Obama Slams Russian Air Strikes, Says They Strenghten ISIS

Barack Obama lashes out at the Russian anti-ISIS campaign in Syria, claiming its air strikes are strengthening Islamic State. Retired US Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Karen Kwiatkowski believes Barack Obama is basing his judgements on Russia's actions in Syria on the results of the American-led campaign.

English-speaking Female Jihadis in Libya Issue Islamic State Call to Arms

An image supplied by Islamist media outlet Welayat Tarablos
allegedly shows Isis members parading the street in Libya's
coastal city of Sirte.

THE GUARDIAN: Three women, believed to be British, are using social media to reach out to western Muslims to open up new front in north Africa

English-speaking female jihadis have been using social media to try to lure western Muslims to join them with Islamic State in Libya, a new front in the war on terror just 400 miles from Europe’s shores.

Three native English-speaking women have been monitored for months by the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, a UK-based thinktank, and are believed to be British. They say they have been living in the war[-]torn north African country since at least the start of the summer.

Using a variety of social media platforms, including Twitter and encrypted messaging apps such as Surespot and Telegram, the three have reached out to their hundreds of followers, and as routes into Syria via its 500-mile border with Turkey have become further restricted they have advertised the journey to Libya as the easiest way of joining Isis’s so-called caliphate.

Isis has been in Libya for just over a year and the country is home to its largest forces outside of the Middle East. The group has its headquarters in the northern coastal town of Sirte, birthplace of Libya’s late dictator Muammar Gaddafi, but also has a training base to the west of the capital, Tripoli.

Melanie Smith, ISD researcher and an expert in western female jihadis, said evidence of women travelling to Libya to start a new life under Isis represented a dangerous tipping point. » | Shiv Malik, and Chris Stephen in Tunis | Sunday, September 27, 2015

'Caliphate Better Than Britain' - Anjem Choudary

That's what he said at a rally in April

European Refugee Crisis - The Anatomy of a Cover-up

Britain Should Help 'Crush' Isil in Syria, Former Archbishop of Canterbury Warns

THE TELEGRAPH: Lord Carey, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, says that air strikes in Syria may be needed to stop Isil 'for once and for all' as David Cameron considers a vote on military intervention.

Britain should "crush" Isil by taking part in military action in Syria, a former Archbishop of Canterbury suggests today amid mounting calls for further air strikes.

In an article for The Telegraph, Lord Carey says that it is "not enough" to send aid to Syria and admit thousands of refugees to this country.

He argues that Isil needs to be dealt with "for once and for all" and that "air strikes and other British military assistance" may be needed in Syria.

He also says Britain should be prioritising Christian refugees who are victims of "ethnic cleansing" and have been crucified, beheaded, raped, and subjected to forced conversion by Isil.

The comments from one of Britain's most senior religious figures are likely to be welcomed by David Cameron, who has suggested that military intervention is required to solve the Syrian crisis. » | Steven Swinford, Deputy Political Editor | Saturday, September 5, 2015

Lebanese Communists Gear Up to Fight ISIS: 'We Are Sons of This Land and Won't Leave It'

At the Lebanon-Syria border civilians are taking up the fight against ISIS themselves by forming communist guerilla group.

Islamic State Fights Syrian Rebels and 'Moves Closer to Central Damascus'

THE TELEGRAPH: Isil militants and Islamist rebels are fighting in Asali, part of the capital's southern Qadam district

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) battled Syrian rebel forces in a Damascus neighbourhood on Monday, bringing the extremists closer than ever to the centre of the capital, a monitoring group said.

Isil militants fought street battles against Islamist rebels in Asali, part of the capital's southern Qadam district, after seizing two streets there over the weekend, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

"This is the closest Isil has ever been to the heart of Damascus," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said. » | AFP | Monday, August 31, 2015

Isil 'Blows Up Temple of Bel' in Ancient Syrian City of Palmyra

THE SUNDAY TELEGRAPH: It is the second of the city's ancient temples to be destroyed in a week as jihadist groups continues its programme of "cultural cleansing"

Violent jihadists of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) have partially destroyed the the most famous landmark in the ancient Syrian city of Palmyra.

The Temple of Bel was damaged on Sunday, according to messages posted on the Twitter account of a local activist group, the Palmyra Co-ordination Council.

Although the extent of the destruction was unclear, a Palmyra resident, Nasser al Thaer, said that a huge blast had echoed through the area on Sunday afternoon.

"The bricks and the columns are on the ground," he told the Associated Press. » | Louisa Loveluck | Sunday, August 30, 2015

Inside Story: Why Is ISIL Targeting Cultural Heritage?

The armed group's destruction of ancient sites in Syria and Iraq is drawing condemnation worldwide.

Captured, Sold, Raped: ISIS Turns Thousands of Christian Women and Children into Sex Slaves

Since the Iraqi city of Mosul was captured by ISIS many women and children have been kidnapped by ISIS fighters.

An organisation to help save those victims has been founded recently by Steve Maman. It uses crowd funded donations to pay for the captives' release, but does not have any contact with - and does not pay ransoms to - ISIS fighters.