ISIS Fighters Shave Beards, Dress As Women To Escape Russian Airstrikes, Flee Syria

October 20th, 2015 | by Vandita

A picture tweeted by Iraqi journalist Hala Jaber proves that ISIS is a community of cowards. Even though shaving or cutting facial hair is “haram” (forbidden) under the strict Sharia law, ‘Islamic’ State fighters in Syria are reportedly shaving their beards and dressing up as women to flee Syria, in the wake of Russia stepping up its military campaign to bulldoze the terror outfit. The reports of fleeing Islamic State jihadists comes as at least 40 members of the group were killed in an airstrike in Hama, west-central Syria.

Since Russia launched airstrikes against Islamic State in Syria, around 530 strikes have been conducted by its Air Force. Hundreds of terrorists and dozens of command posts, depots and other ISIS infrastructure have been destroyed. Moscow security services claim thousands of terrorists have downed their weapons and fled to Turkey from where they may try to head to Europe as refugees.

“The majority of armed gangs are demoralized. Discontent with field commanders is growing amid the fighters, and there are instances of disobeying orders,” Russian General Andrey Kartapolov told reporters adding that cases of desertion among the jihadists are no longer isolated, with them now fleeing “en masse”.

There are two more reasons why ISIS fighters are leaving their stronghold.

A senior commander in the Iranian-backed Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah, who leads several pro-regime military units in Syria, told International Business Times, “We’ve heard info that [ISIS fighters] are leaving. Daesh [the Arabic acronym for ISIS] wants a foothold in Africa. The order we have now is to destroy Daesh and push them to the Iraqi border to kill them there.”

ISIS leaders have been calling for additional fighters in Libya, a country that could open doors for the group across North Africa. ISIS has been in Libya, home to its largest forces outside of the Middle East, for just over a year. In August, a Saudi militant Abu Ali Jazrawi fighting with the offshoot of Islamic State in Libya used a video to call for jihadists from across the world to rally in Libya and fight for ISIS against the Libyan Army.

In September, The Guardian reported that three women, believed to be British, were using social media to reach out to western Muslims to open up new front in North Africa. In late June, according to the newspaper, one woman calling herself Umm [sister] Unknown wrote: “Come to Libya. Hijra [religious migration] is not only to Shaam [Syria] now. Libya needs you too.”

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