"God willing, we will raise the flag of Allah in the White House."
This is what an ISIS militant told the camera when we watched the first two [4]parts of Vice News' groundbreaking inside look into the Islamic State's caliphate, which showed how, in part one, the highly organized Jihadist force came seemingly out of nowhere, and in an unprecedented landgrab in Iraq and Syria, succeeded in forming its own sovereign and religious state; in part two, reporter Medyan Dairieh, who spent three weeks in the Islamic State, looked at how ISIS indoctrinates children into fundamentalist ideology and took a stroll through an ISIS military parade proudly featuring confiscated (or is that gifted?) US vehicles.
And while we still don't know if ISIS is anywhere near close to making good on its threat to the American president's place of residence, here are the next two parts of Vice's 5-part "Islamic State" series.
In part 3, the VICE News crew observes how Sharia law is enforced in the capital Raqqa: it joins the "Hisbah", or the Sharia police on their daily patrols during Ramadan, and witnesses how they check on shops and scrutinize produce, while at the same time ensuring their strict rules on women’s appearances are adhered to. The crew then goes to an Islamic State prison and speaks with inmates accused of abusing drugs and selling alcohol. The prisoners’ punishments are revealed as well as how they have since “rediscovered” their devotion to the Islamic faith since their incarceration — but are yet to be granted permission to declare their allegiance to the caliph, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
In part 4 VICE News visits the Sharia courts where those accused of infractions are sentenced to harsh penalties, including death by crucifixion. But the courts don’t just handle crime. Citizens can bring all manners of complaints, including family disputes, and see the Islamic State’s form of justice doled out.
With unprecedented access, VICE News reporter Medyan Dairieh also visits the section of the court specifically set up for Christians, where the Islamic State discusses its treatment of minorities, and sees a former Armenian Catholic Church that has been converted into an Islamic center.
