ABC didn't disclose that A3P is a white nationalist political party in the United States.Īs iO9 pointed out, “This is one of those 'garbage in, garbage out' stories, since ABC News' source was Twitter.” The outlet cited to analysis from Aaron Zelin, a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, who explained, “It's an old image put out by fans of the group. On June 3 ABC News published a map - also cited by - which was “purportedly published” by ISIS and “widely shared on Twitter.” According to ABC, the “terrifying” map was “published at the same time that ISIS announced the creation of a caliphate.”īut ABC News didn't actually trace the image to ISIS, and instead relied on a tweet of the image from American Third Position (A3P). In the wake of this news, media outlets from Fox News to ABC have issued reports on the militant group's future plans based on maps culled from Twitter to declare that ISIS is strategizing to take over swath of territory larger than the Roman Empire within the next five years - a goal that would include, among other feats, conquering Spain, Portugal, Greece, and most or all of India. The maps resemble the geographic dominance of the historic caliphates that ended with the demise of the Ottoman Empire. unilaterally declaring statehood and demanding allegiance from other Islamist groups.” On June 29, according to the Wall Street Journal, ISIS “announced itself as a new Islamist 'caliphate'. In a rush to sensationalize growing violence in Iraq at the hands of religious extremists, media have circulated dubiously sourced maps which purport to illustrate plans for a future Islamic caliphate that extends from Spain to the southern and easternmost reaches of India.Ī Sunni Islamist militant group calling itself the Islamic State of Iraq (ISIS) has torn through Iraq in recent weeks, violently capturing several cities and straining the Iraqi government's ability to respond.

Victoria 2 state map