Dabiq (magazine)

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Introduction

Dabiq (Arabic: دابق, romanizedDābiq) was an online magazine used by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) for Islamic radicalisation and recruitment. It was first published in July 2014 in a number of different languages (including English). Dabiq itself states the magazine is for the purposes of unitarianism, truth-seeking, migration, holy war and community (tawhid, manhaj, hijrah, jihad and jama'ah respectively).


Details

Dabiq was published by ISIL via the deep web, although it was widely available online through other sources. The first issue carried the date "Ramadan 1435" in the Islamic Hijri calendar. According to the magazine, its name was taken from the town of Dabiq in northern Syria, which is mentioned in a hadith about Armageddon. ISIL believes Dabiq is where Muslim and infidel forces will eventually face each other. After the crusader forces' defeat, the apocalypse will begin. Every issue of Dabiq contained a quote attributed to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi: "The spark has been lit here in Iraq, and its heat will continue to intensify –by Allah's permission- until it burns the crusader armies in Dabiq".

Harleen K. Gambhir of the Institute for the Study of War considered that while al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's magazine Inspire focuses on encouraging its readers to carry out lone-wolf attacks on the West, Dabiq was more concerned with establishing the religious legitimacy of ISIL and its self-proclaimed caliphate, and encouraging Muslims to emigrate there. In its October 2014 issue, an article outlined religious justifications for slavery and praised its revival.

ISIL used its Dabiq magazine to express its strong opposition to groups including Christians, Jews, Hindus, Shia Muslims and the Muslim Brotherhood.

In September 2016, ISIL replaced Dabiq with another online magazine, Rumiyah (Arabic for Rome), published in English and other languages. Analysts speculated this was due to ISIL being driven out of the town of Dabiq by the Turkish Military and Syrian Rebels in October 2016. The new title refers to an Islamic prophecy about the fall of Rome.


Issues

Issue Cover title Date (Hijri) Date (Gregorian) Publication frequency
1
"The Return of Khilafah" Ramadan 1435 5 July 2014
2
"The Flood" Ramadan 1435 27 July 2014 22
3
"A Call to Hijrah" Shawwal 1435 10 September 2014 45
4
"The Failed Crusade" Dhul-Hijjah 1435 11 October 2014 31
5
"Remaining and Expanding" Muharram 1436 21 November 2014 41
6
"Al Qa'idah of Waziristan: A Testimony from Within" Rabi' Al-Awwal 1436 29 December 2014 38
7
"From Hypocrisy to Apostasy: The Extinction of the Grayzone" Rabi'Al-Akhir 1436 12 February 2015 45
8
"Shari'ah Alone Will Rule Africa" Jumada al-Akhirah 1436 30 March 2015 46
9
"They Plot and Allah Plots" Sha'ban 1436 21 May 2015 52
10
"The Law of Allah or the Laws of Men" Ramadan 1436 13 July 2015 53
11
"From the Battles of Al-Ahzāb to the War of Coalitions" Dhul Qa'Dah 1436 9 September 2015 27
12
"Just Terror" Safar 1437 18 November 2015 101
13
"The Rafidah from Ibn Saba' to the Dajjal" Rabi'Al-Akhir 1437 19 January 2016 62
14
"The Murtadd Brotherhood" Rajab 1437 13 April 2016 85
15
"Break the Cross" Shawwal 1437 31 July 2016 109

Sources