Housewives in a war zone: The reality of life under ISIS

“Oreo cheesecake à la @OumMujahid93 and me,” declares a tweet, showcasing the delicious-looking cheesecake to her social media followers. It’s the sort of tweet sent by thousands of young women worldwide every day – except that nestling next to the cake in this picture is a live grenade.

This is a snapshot of the little-known world of female ISIS members. Often known as “jihadi brides”, there are currently thought to be more than 500 women worldwide who have chosen to leave the relative comforts of their Western upbringings and travel to ISIS-occupied territories in Syria and Iraq. Despite the sensationalised and alarmist narratives in the media regarding these women, the reality on the ground is often much more mundane, according to a new report issued this week by the counter-extremism think-tank the Institute for Strategic Dialogue.

Drawing on extensive research using primary material obtained mainly from the social media accounts of self-identifying muhajirat (migrants) living in ISIS-controlled territory, “Becoming Mulan? Female Western Migrants to ISIS” offers a unique insight into the daily lives (and troubles) of these women from close quarters. What emerges most strongly is that despite the often quite violent ideas and ideologies expressed by these women, they nevertheless possess an enduring normalcy and humanity. After all, many of these muhajirat are teenagers who have been born and brought up in the West, and so naturally their frames of reference are more akin to a 16-year-old in New York or London than a local Syrian or Iraqi. The title of the report itself comes from a statement by one of the women, who tweeted: “I wonder if I can pull a Mulan and enter the battle field” (A reference to the Walt Disney film about a Chinese princess who disguises herself as a man in order to become a soldier).

Such references, explains Ross Frenett, one of the authors of the report, points to the fact that despite their jihadist goals and propaganda slogans these women remain “deeply Western”. One of the paradoxes of their world is that they profess their commitment to their version of “Islam” and their support for atrocities such as mass beheadings, torture, and violence in very relatable language. “It’s a bizarre mix of western teenage speak with a massive amount of brutality,” says Frenett.

However, far from the image of the gun-toting, black-shrouded figure of the “schoolgirl jihadis”, the report suggests that the vast majority of foreign women who join ISIS end up living lives of domestic drudgery and boredom, not of active jihad. For example, one woman writes on her blog that: “there is absolutely nothing for the sisters to participate in Qitaal [fighting]… For the sisters its completely impossible.” Instead, the report suggests that that “the women’s everyday lives are filled with household tasks” and that “a woman’s place, therefore, is predominantly in the home.”

“The idea of going over there and being an empowered single woman isn’t going to happen. The reality is like that of a 1950s housewife in the West,” says Frenett.

The women’s social media correspondences are peppered with domestic advice and titbits; everything from the notorious Oreo cheesecake to tips on how to wash clothes by hand because of the constant electricity shortages. One woman tweets: “I’m making pancakes, and there’s Nutella”.

The flip side of this domesticity is that the freedom and movement of these women is severely limited. Women are not permitted to leave the house without a male guardian and unmarried girls face further problems as they may be forced to marry. Many of the women in the study stress the importance of having a man around. “I really need sisters to stop dreaming about coming to Shaam and not getting married,” writes one woman. “Wallahi life here is very difficult for the Mujahirat… It’s not like the west where you can casually walk out and go to Asda/Walmart… we have to stay safe outside and must always be accompanied by a Mahram [male chaperone].”

Since many of the men these women marry are jihadists involved in active fighting, they are often left alone for long periods of time with no knowledge of where their husbands are and whether or not they are likely to return in one piece. Such circumstances can place women in a vulnerable position, especially if their husband is killed in battle. Social media memes such as the hashtag #NobodyCaresAboutTheWidow have circulated among these women, which according to the report points towards “the distress and difficulties women can face on the death of their husbands.”

More than anything else, these women emerge as young, vulnerable teenagers, susceptible to manipulation and abuse by those around them. This is compounded by the fact that the vast majority don’t speak Arabic and feel foreign and alien to their surroundings, meaning that they often find it difficult to adapt to the constraints of their new lives. As one woman writes: “To live amongst people that differ from you – e.g language, background, lifestyle and etc. is not always fascinating.”

And it’s not just the foreignness of the places that can pose a difficulty to these women; they have effectively chosen to live in a warzone, with all of the difficulties that entails – whether that be electricity shortages, lack of decent sanitation, or the constant threat of bombs and shells. The report also suggests that they can face hostility from the local population who have been forced to live under the rule of ISIS. One particularly chilling example is given by a muhajirah who describes how a young woman was denied medical treatment during a miscarriage.

But these women are not merely victims. The report highlights that although most of these women currently occupy a domestic status, they evidently desire to be involved themselves in the fighting (as signified by the Mulan quote) and there is possibility that they could eventually transition to a more active role. In their current position, they also provide a crucial support structure to ISIS fighters on the ground, as well as being actively involved in the dissemination of propaganda material online through the support and encouragement of atrocities such as the recent Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris.

It is for this reason that such reports are so significant, not just for casting a light on the hitherto shadowy world of female muhajirat, but also for providing insights into the ways in which the complexities of these women’s lives may also be used as policy tools to stem the tide of foreign fighters to ISIS territory. One such insight is the domestic drudgery and instability of life under ISIS, while another is the emotional significance of the girls’ families, many of whom disapprove of their daughters’ actions and whose influence can serve as a significant barrier to their decision to travel.

Ultimately, this report showcases the mundane, everyday life behind the sensationalised media images – providing an important counter-narrative to the “hipster jihadi”, the alluring image of “the jihadi with the wind in his hair” that ISIS wants us to believe isn’t just a photo shopped image of a war-weary soldier standing in front of a green screen.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.