ISIS-linked group uses Donald Trump in new propaganda video
An Islamic State (ISIS)-linked media organization used footage of GOP presidential front-runner Donald Trump in a new propaganda video following the attacks in Brussels.
The video, purportedly released by the pro-ISIS group Al Battar, shows footage of Trump calling Brussels a "horror show" after the attacks there — which ISIS has claimed credit for.
"Brussels was one of the great cities, one of the most beautiful cities of the world 20 years ago, and it was amazing actually and safe, and now it's a horror show, it's an absolute horror show," Trump says in the video titled "Brussels Attacks."
You May Also Like
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
The clip was taken from an interview Trump did with CBS following the attacks in the European city. The propaganda video — which was posted on and quickly removed from YouTube — overlays flames over the Trump clip, before going on to celebrate the attacks that killed more than two-dozen people.
This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.
Seamus Hughes, an expert on violent extremism at the George Washington University’s Center for Cyber & Homeland Security, said it's not unusual for propaganda videos to show American presidential candidates. He said this is the first ISIS-linked video he's seen showing footage of Trump.
However, it's not the first time a terrorist group has used the candidate as a propaganda tool. In January, al-Shabaab, a Somali terrorist group linked to Al Qaeda, released a recruitment video featuring Trump.
Democrats and Republicans alike have warned that Trump's rhetoric against Muslims could help ISIS recruit fighters to their cause. Earlier this week a terrorism expert told MSNBC that "they're probably cutting videos of this right now," referring to Trump's comments in the aftermath of the Belgium attack.
Trump has floated the idea of banning Muslims from immigrating to the United States, and has called for stopping the U.S.'s program that accepts Syrian refugees, saying the refugees could be terrorists in disguise.
Trump is not the only presidential candidate who has used anti-Muslim rhetoric following the Brussels attacks.
After the attacks, Sen. Ted Cruz called for police to increase their patrols of Muslim neighborhoods.
Have something to add to this story? Share it in the comments.
Topics Donald Trump Elections Politics
Emily Cahn is a political reporter at Mashable. Prior to Mashable, Cahn spent nearly four years at Roll Call, where she covered House and Senate races and congressional shenanigans. She has also been a copy editor at The Washington Post, and interned at The Hill, the Houston Chronicle and CBS News when she was a student at The George Washington University. Aside from being a political junkie, Cahn loves dogs and experimenting with cooking. Follow her on Twitter @CahnEmily, where she posts pictures of her family's two misbehaved poodles.
