Center for Strategic Communication

Sisyphus on the treadmill of memes

[ by Charles Cameron — Khorasan, black banners, the Ghazwa-e-Hind — when will the updating ever stop? ] . ** It looks as though I first realized that “the black banners of Khorasan” was a meme I should be “eyes out” for was in July...

Jottings 7: Two for the iconography of terror

[ by Charles Cameron — taking a break from my pressing writerly duties ] . I wouldn’t have noticed these two offerings quite so clearly if I hadn’t been pointed to each of them in the last couple of days. Both look to be of considerable interest:...

Inscription on the flag of the Mahdi’s army?

[ by Charles Cameron — how to tell an authentic Mahdist “black banner” — from a false flag, perhaps? ] . There has been considerable talk about black flags featuring the Shahada: This is the creed of Islam, and reads, “There is not God...

Two tales from the outsider jihad

[ by Charles Cameron — wanna know the very latest on those black banners from Khorasan? ] . Here’s the scene that greeted four British recruits to the jihad on their arrival at a training camp in Pakistan in August 2011: This wasn’t like the training...