Syrian Shopkeeper Talks About ISIS' Brutal Punishments
A resident in Manjib, a city held by ISIS for more than two years, details the group's brutality in their bid to control the people of Syria. Speaking to BBC News, the shopkeeper said the jihadis subjected those who defied their twisted form of Islam to cruel and inhumane punishments.
"After they beheaded someone, they would crucify his body. They would leave it to rot for two days," said the man. "If they caught you smoking, they would probably cut some fingers off. If they caught you stealing and there were two witnesses, then that was it," he added.
BBC also showed footage of the ISIS dungeon where it kept prisoners. What struck the reporter were the cages, which were barely big enough to contain a man. To assure maximum discomfort, captives had to curl up to fit the boxes with tiny air holes that kept them alive. Those who survived had to lose one leg just to be extracted from the cage.
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ISIS' brutal methods of punishment that are displayed to the public are a means to keep the populace in line. These include amputating the hands as punishment for stealing, as well as caning and rape. Forms of execution, on the other hand, included stoning, burning alive and beheading.
The source also mentioned about people being pushed off on top of buildings. Last year, a man was thrown off a building for allegedly being gay. The victim was blindfolded and his hands tied behind him when he dropped 100 feet to the ground in front of hundreds of people.
Despite the atrocities, ISIS managed to gain some adherents. A local woman told the news crew about the "good" things the militants brought to their place. "Children were in the mosques. Young men didn't pester the girls," she said. "The men behaved themselves and the women dressed properly," the woman added.
