One Thousand And One Nights in Raqqa
By Ahmed Tarek Aboelsoud
December 15, 2014
You might call him reckless, but John Cantlie definitely knew what he was doing when he returned to Syria just three months after he was given his freedom by the Free Syrian Army. Still injured, he returned with his colleague James Foley, hoping to shoot a documentary about his period in captivity. It was then that he was abducted for a second time.
But who knows what it was that motivated Cantlie to repeat his journey? Was it bravery? An unfailing commitment to his responsibilities as a journalist? Or simply an addiction to adrenaline? The list of possibilities is endless.
What we know about Cantlie is that he comes from a long line of adventurers and orientalists. He has a portfolio of work that defines him as such. He has covered stories about extreme sports, fast cars and if there were a show titled “The Most Dangerous Places On Earth, For Journalists,” he would host it.
Ironically, in spite of his current situation, Cantlie continues to regularly report on his thoughts induced by captivity to anyone who chooses to listen to the storyteller, via the Internet. In his videos, he has been filmed wearing Guantanamo-orange against a black background. He appears consistent, smart and alert and there is evidence of his English sense of humor, for now.
Cantlie sounds bitter, though, after two years in captivity, identifying himself every time he begins speaking as “the British citizen abandoned by my own government.” After all, this is the man who watched while hostages from other European countries were released following negotiations with ISIS. As for Cantlie and other Britons and Americans like him? Nothing. Who can blame him then for repeating such a stark introduction?
Emails from home brought him confirmation of both the British and American governments’ decisions not to react to his plight. In addition to this, a complete media blackout was imposed and, for “safety reasons,” the families of Cantlie and his fellow hostages were forbidden to speak about those abducted at all.
Worse still, Cantlie watched incredulously with the rest of the world as the beheadings began to take place. To him, the victims were not only innocent men, they were colleagues. He knew them: James Foley, Peter Kassig (who converted in captivity to avoid being killed) and all the others in between. Once he was close to them, now he himself is close to the knife. What must that experience do to a man?
The storyteller knows that he is a dead man walking. He also knows that his chances of getting a response from his government relate directly to the amount of media attention he can muster. Because the main global news channels believe he is being forced to broadcast his videos, the specifics of what he talks about continue to be ignored.
Just like Cantlie, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s demands have also fallen on deaf ears. In exchange for “the storyteller” he has proposed the release and subsequent deportation of all Muslims detained in British prisons. Their destination would be Baghdadi land.
Cantlie knows that staying alive is his own mission impossible. How does he ensure this? By doing what he does best. Just like Scheherazade, his life now depends solely on his ability to tell stories through a last desperate attempt to attract attention by way of social media. This is a cry for help.
So far ISIS has missed any opportunity it may have had to use the world’s media to tell its side of the story. Furthermore, its actions have discouraged any reporter or journalist from visiting its bases, no matter how curious. Nobody will meet with ISIS; beheading is a scary thing. There are many brave men in the world who aren’t afraid of death, but everybody is afraid of being beheaded. In terms of a media war, this will bring ISIS inevitable defeat.
Yet Baghdadi’s Scheherazade is a solution for the media dilemma of ISIS. Cantlie is useful and this is now keeping him alive, albeit temporarily. Maybe he is even being treated better because of it. With no choice but to cooperate, Cantlie’s writing is his only outlet. It is possible that he would have chosen to do this anyway.
Indeed, Cantlie doesn’t appear to be forced to do what he is doing. He never sides with ISIS. Rather, he speaks with the confident tone of an analyst standing on the front line of fire. Scheherazade might even be allowed to conduct research on the Internet in order to tell a more interesting story.
Cantlie has released seven videos so far. They are professionally made. Six of them are under the title “Lend Me Your Ears.” And one has been made in the style of a live broadcast, directly from the heart of Ain al-Arab, widely known by its Kurdish name Kobani. Cantlie tells the world that the real battle for Kobani is very different than the way it has been portrayed outside. He looks more healthy and more active. Cantlie isn’t wearing his Guantanamo shirt anymore.
He is just like Scheherazade: limitlessly innovative, knowing how to keep his head. Nobody knows when he will cease to be useful. All we know is that soon the rooster will crow and Cantlie’s story will come to an end.
Ahmed Tarek Aboelsoud is an Egyptian blogger and writer based in Cairo. He wrote this commentary for THE DAILY STAR.
Source: http://www.dailystar.com.lb/Opinion/Commentary/2014/Dec-15/281040-one-thousand-and-one-nights-in-raqqa.ashx#sthash.owVQjLNc.dpuf
URL: https://newageislam.com/islam-terrorism-jihad/one-thousand-one-nights-raqqa/d/100492