By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 24 October 2025
Islamic State’s Commentary on Israel (So Far) in 2025
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Tag Archives: Persians
The Islamic State’s Attack Reports and Ideological Focus in Al-Naba From June to October 2025
Jewish Influence At the Origins of Islam
How the Islamic State Uses History to Justify Cruelty
By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 2 April 2018
Al-Naba 125, page 10
The 125th edition of Al-Naba, the Islamic State’s (IS) weekly newsletter, has an article on page 10, “From History: A River of Blood”, which relays a story that gives a good example of how IS uses Islamic historiography to justify its brutality. Continue reading
Islam’s Origins Make For An Extraordinary Story, But Not A Miracle
By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on March 20, 2016
Tom Holland’s In the Shadow of the Sword: The Battle for Global Empire and the End of the Ancient World (2012) is a smooth read, a feat hardly foreordained in a book that exceeds 500 pages in length. Holland writes narratively, giving his interpretation of the most likely scenario of Islam’s origins—and then presents the extended evidence and debates in endnotes for those who wish to dig into the weeds. This has gotten him into trouble among haughtier reviewers for writing “pop history”, which appears to mean an exploration of the past that there is a danger people will want to read.
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