South Africa increasingly seen as key ISIS pipeline for

jihadis, cash
South Africa has become a key source for ISIS of not only money, but also jihadist fighters who
typically hail from a small area of Johannesburg, diplomatic and intelligence officials told Fox News.
Young South Africans are flocking to the Middle East to join the black-clad terrorist army in Syria
and Iraq, typically flying to Turkey and then making their way south to the so-called caliphate,
according to officials.
We could say with certainty that 50 to 60 persons, South African citizens, have joined ISIS in Syria,
[but] there are some reports suggesting that more than a hundred have done so, and as many as 300
or more, Iraqi Ambassador to South Africa Hashim Al- Alawi told Fox News.
We could say with certainty that 50 to 60 persons, South African citizens, have joined ISIS in Syria,
[but] there are some reports suggesting that more than a hundred have done so, and as many as 300
or more.
- Hashim Al- Alawi, Iraqi Ambassador to South Africa
Al-Alawi believes there could be many more ISIS recruits leaving South Africa who get to the front
line undetected. While ISIS recruits come from throughout the country, most are radicalized and
lured from two downtown districts of Johannesburg, Mayfair and Fordsburg. Two South Africans
killed ealier this year in Syria came from the area, which also was once home to Samantha
Lewthwaite, the British so-called White Widow terrorist.
Non-Muslims are not welcome in the downtown area known for spawning terrorists. A Fox News
crew that recently tried to film near a Mayfair mosque was threatened and chased from the area.
The ominous encounter raised for the first time the specter of no-go zones, or areas where Muslim
extremists have sole control of the streets.
Sources told Fox News ISIS, working through the Internet and through radical clerics on the
ground, is using sophisticated psychological methods to brainwash and recruit young South
Africans. The radicalizing messages include instructions on how to get from Africa to Syria and Iraq
without detection.
Those who respond to ISIS call leave through Johannesburgs main international airport, where just
weeks ago, five men were nabbed with $6 million and believed headed for the Islamic State. Earlier
this year, a 15-year-old girl was pulled from a plane minutes before takeoff after her family told
police she had taken a large amount of money and disappeared. She was on a flight to Turkey, to slip
into Syria to become an ISIS bride of war.
Institute for Security Studies analyst Martin Ewi said it is no mystery why some South Africans want
to join ISIS.
"It is because of their belief in the message, the propaganda," Ewi said.
Sources told Fox News South African authorities are concerned enough about the situation to have
established a specialized a deep undercover unit dedicated to stemming the outgoing tide of jihadist

warriors, a development intelligence officials would neither confirm nor deny.

Paul Tilsley is a freelance reporter/ producer for Fox News, operating out of Johannesburg, South
Africa. Follow his African stories @paultilsley
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