The Utility of Disabled Fighters in the Islamic State

Traditionally, terrorism and individuals with disabilities are portrayed in roles of victimization with disabled individuals being either the target or decoy in attacks. The self-proclaimed Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) has altered this concept by using individuals with disabilities for recruitment, propaganda, and mobilization purposes. This Research Note explores ISIS’s use of disabled fighters through an analysis of online content, consisting of videos collected off the encrypted messaging platform Telegram, along with open-source Internet sites, bearing in mind the concepts of Entertainment-Education and the use of persuasive messaging. I argue that ISIS is using its own method of Entertainment-Education, employing persuasive narrative aimed at disabled individuals, while also using them as propaganda tools. Additionally, highlighting disabled fighters in their media products, offers disabled individuals a collective identity consisting of usefulness and agency in the group, either as recruitment spokesmen, shaming able-bodied individuals into action, or as attackers.