White House Strategy Includes PR Campaign to 'Highlight ISIL's Hypocrisy'

The White House says part of the administration’s strategy against the Islamic State will be a PR campaign to expose the “true nature” of ISIS.

“Clerics around the world have spoken up in recent weeks to highlight ISIL’s hypocrisy, condemning the group’s barbarity and criticizing its self- proclaimed ‘caliphate,'” says a fact sheet released to reporters just before President Obama spoke. “We will work with our partners throughout the Muslim world to highlight ISIL’s hypocrisy and counter its false claim to be acting in the name of religion.”

The fact sheet also stresses the need to keep “working aggressively” to choke ISIS’ “significant and diverse sources of funding.”

It also notes that intelligence on the group needs to improve.

“Continuing to gain more fidelity on ISIL’s capabilities, plans, and intentions is central to our strategy to degrade and ultimately destroy the group,” the fact sheet said. “Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance flights and other important efforts will strengthen our ability to understand this threat, as well as to share vital information with our Iraqi and other regional partners to enable them to effectively counter ISIL.”

The Sept. 24 “historic summit-level meeting” of the UN Security Council, which will be chaired by President Obama, will focus largely on stemming the flow of foreign fighters, the White House said.

“Foreign terrorist fighters are ISIL’s lifeblood, and a global security threat—with citizens of nearly 80 countries filling its ranks,” the fact sheet said. “Over 100 foreign fighters from the United States have traveled or attempted to travel to the conflict.”

“We will continue to use the criminal justice system as a critical tool in our counterterrorism toolbox.  Federal criminal laws provide a sound basis to prosecute those who provide material support to ISIL or who conspire with ISIL to plot attacks at home or abroad,” continued the strategy. “With respect to aviation security, we will work with air carriers to implement responsible threat-based security and screening requirements, and provide additional screening to individuals suspected of affiliation with ISIL. Finally, we will counter violent extremism here at home, including tailored domestic programs to prevent violent extremism and radicalization in order to intervene with at-risk individuals before they become radicalized toward violence and decide to travel abroad to Syria and Iraq to join ISIL.”