When news of terrorism filled newspapers worldwide in the past few years, many wondered what drove people to join extremists and commit atrocities.
This Thursday, August 6th, the documentary on iWonder titled Jihad Jane delves into a captivating tale of two American women’s descent into terrorism, covering the dark and damaged pasts that paved their way to radicalisation and the trail of shock and disbelief they left in their wake.
In March 2010, two American women, including one who named herself ‘Jihad Jane’ were taken into custody as part of a number of high-profile arrests in Waterford, Ireland.
In 2014, Jihad Jane, real name Colleen LaRose, a blonde, blue-eyed woman from suburban Philadelphia, was convicted of conspiracy to murder a Swedish artist who drew a cartoon of the prophet Muhammad.
Handled sensitively throughout, and with unprecedented access to the people involved, for the first time ever the documentary tells the story of LaRose’s path to terrorism and her radicalisation via the dark corners of social media and the internet.
Dating back to a childhood filled with abuse, the film shows how those early years paved way for the damaged and doomed relationships that followed and her eventual decision to leave the US to join the Algerian leader of a Jihadist group.
Commenting on the launch of Jihad Jane, available to stream exclusively on iwonder, Head of Content Alexandra Fox-Hughes says: “While no-one can excuse the actions of two women who followed the dark path we see in Jihad Jane, what emerges is a far more complex and nuanced story of how scars from the past can create personal demons from which some people are unable to escape.”
Viewers can watch Jihad Jane on iWonder on mobile phones via iOS and Android apps, browsers at www.iwonder.com, with Apple TV, Android TV or through Google Chromecast or Apple’s Airplay.
