A long “witness statement” purported to be from a Dagestani militant who has “returned from IS” is making the rounds of pro-Caucasus Emirate (and thus anti-IS) social media.

The witness statement — the authenticity of which is not confirmed but it does fit with the style and type of a number of other similar items written by North Caucasian militants in Syria) –is interesting because it raises a number of issues specific to IS’s Russophone contingent as well as other complaints that are more generally about life in IS.

I have translated below a few excerpts from the statement which came via the Osman Hanov account on Facebook, though it has been shared elsewhere and has been a subject of discussion, along the lines of the ongoing criticisms of IS that have arisen among CE militants and pro-CE supporters.

The militant starts off by talking about IS is like one of those Roach Motels we used to buy in Moscow: you can check how you can’t check out:

Firstly, once you’ve gotten in you’ll never get out. They take away your passport immediately, and don’t give it back. Between IS cities, you travel only using documents, and you without a permit you won’t get from Raqqa to Mosul, not to mention leaving IS [he means the lands controlled by IS]. One time when I was in Dagestan I heard them say: “Come, if you do not like it you can go back,” but it’s a lie, you can’t.

The Dagestani also makes a complaint that a number of other North Caucasian militants have about IS (in fact it’s a common complaint) — that IS just uses its recruits as cannon fodder, or “meat” as it’s called in Russian, short for “cannon meat.” Actually, the “cannon fodder” complaint is one that is associated very strongly with Umar Shishani, which is one reason why non-IS Russophone militants and those who have quit IS are baffled, or sometimes even angry at Western media reports hailing Umar as a military genius. Does it matter if the Western media have the wrong idea about Umar? Maybe not from a military and intel perspective. But I do think this speaks to a need for research that actually digs deeper and looks at what militants are actually saying, rather than the propaganda. And please take a look at what this Dagestani militant is saying and tell me that this can’t be used as a CVE message…

Secondly, they treat you as cannon fodder. The Emir can easily send a battalion to a certain and, most important, a senseless death, then send another just the same, and another, and another. I myself was a witness to this, and many who were there confirmed it.

Just remember Kobani. When it became clear that they would not hold the town, they sent crowds of brothers there for a long time to certain death for the sake of the media image, so as not to spoil it with defeat.

He later goes on to say that the reports that IS has called for specialists to come to Syria/Iraq are not true:

They only want cannon fodder, there were brothers who came from various professions and no one was used except the doctors.

And this is what he has to say about military training — there isn’t much. This fits with reports, which I have covered here, of young and inexperienced IS militants who are sent to their deaths in Kobani and Baiji.

Military training is not carried out properly, you rush through training, and is it possible to prepare in a couple of three month sessions? As a result, a huge number of people die in their first battle.

Here’s what he has to say about how IS treats the families of those who have been killed in battle:

They will be pushy to your wife and demand that she marry another man, and if she does not do so – then she will move to some sort of a hangar, where women like her live with their children, 15-20 people, without protection and in very difficult conditions in the cold and with poor food. If she wants to leave then they won’t let her.

And here’s the skinny on IS’s Russophone militants:

Fifth, the brothers here. They are very varied. There are some who are very interesting, from amazing countries like the Maldives, Sri Lanka and Australia, from the whole world.

But among the Russian speakers there is a lot of fitna, a lot of ignorance. You can go to the Sharia court and slander a brother for personal ambitions of envy. The judges are already tired of our fights.

I’m going to jump forward now to some more interesting questions he raises about some of the more well known individuals in IS’s Russophone contingent:

Why do the intelligence services of many countries including Russia not stop people who go join IS? How did Nadir Abu Khalid get to IS?

He has a conspiracy theory about this, but one which has also been raised in polite circles:

Look at Dagestan. Before our mosques were full of people and lessons were conducted by people like Nadir, Medinsky, Abu Umar, Kamil Abu Sultan and other brothers. People flocked to Islam, constantly learned and the infidels were in a panic and did not know what to do. And what now? All gone, no lessons, there are almost no calls, at the pulpits there are only “peaceful” types like Abdullah Abu Amir and they are put under pressure, parents are willing to handcuff their kids but not allow them to go to a Salafist mosque because they know that they will eventually leave for IS and die. Who reaped the benefit from all this? The Russian infidels. They boast of their own wisdom, if you do not believe me read their media.