By Faisal Abu Bakr | 2025-01-02

When it controlled parts of Iraq and Syria, the "Islamic State of Iraq and Syria" (ISIS) turned zakat, one of the five pillars of Islam, into a tool of extortion to raise funds for its own, non-charitable purposes.

Under the pretext that it was enforcing Islamic law (sharia) -- which mandates that 2.5% of one's annual wealth be given to the poor -- ISIS turned the collection of zakat into a mandatory protection racket.

Its henchmen demanded large sums of money from merchants and residents in the territories it controlled under threat of violence, forcing some families to flee.

And it did not use the money it collected by force for charitable purposes.

"ISIS elements imposed the payment of sums of money as zakat," a 40-year-old Iraqi who fled Mosul when ISIS arrived told Al-Fassel, asking that his name not be used.

In one case, he said, a shop worker who was unable to keep up with ISIS's demands for money fled the area after five months.

In another, a Mosul money exchange owner received threats after failing to keep up with the group's escalating demands.

"ISIS elements were sending messages via phones to merchants to pay what they called zakat, and those who did not comply were threatened with death and the bombing of their shops," a Baghdad University professor told Al-Fassel.

Two female students in his class fled Mosul with their families, fearing further violence, after relatives were forced to pay "several times more than the estimated zakat," the professor said, asking that his name not be used.

"This is theft in the name of religion," he said.

Abusing charity

Starting in January 2015, ISIS systematically exploited the zakat collection process to generate millions, political analyst Faisal Ahmed told Al-Fassel.

This led to businesses closing, families fleeing and communities breaking apart, he said.

In addition to its extortion under the guise of zakat and extensive looting, Ahmed said, ISIS kidnapped hostages for ransom -- among them the 15-year-old son of Hadramaut businessman Abdullah Abu Bakr al-Adani al-Junaid.

ISIS released the teenager in March 2023 after it received a ransom payment.

The group's corruption of zakat reflects a broader pattern of twisting Islamic principles for profit and power, turning a pillar of welfare into a tool of terror.

Many people complied with ISIS's demands in order avoid becoming one of its thousands of victims, whose corpses the group buried in multiple mass graves or threw into al-Khasfa, a desert sinkhole south of Mosul.