Militant Imagery Project

The use of propaganda and imagery by terrorist groups has long been an understudied dimension of the broader field of political violence. This project explores the use of imagery and visual themes by militant groups, focusing largely on jihadist media production. Jihadist organizations and individuals inspired by their message are prolific producers and distributors of visual propaganda, and their efforts have expanded exponentially online. However, these images frequently utilize themes which can be inscrutable to those not familiar with the sub-culture. It is our hope that this project will provide academics, practitioners, and students with a basic contextual understanding of the ideas these images convey before they turn to the larger questions of why they are employed, how they work, and what responses they may elicit.

The First Edition of this project was completed in 2006. The second phase (2010-2013) included indexing the project’s initial images, expanding and incorporating new images, and putting all of the images online in a searchable format. Particular attention was given to groups who use images to further financial, material, and ideological support for violence. The imagery dataset provides not just a textual analysis, but also full translation, if texts are part of the image, and a search engine for those interested in specific visual motifs. While by no means an exhaustive list, we feel it provides a sample of the most influential and prominent images and themes. We hope it will serve as a useful tool for practitioners, academics and the general public. Contingent upon funding and interest, we hope to update the dataset to highlight visual themes of additional militant groups in the future.

Image Commemorating Wasim Mansur
While participating in jihad gives a jihadist important religious credibility, death in battle provides immortality, as the deceased is ranked...
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ISI Image with Dome of Rock
The image was produced by Shumukh al-Islam Network. It is comprised of a number of elements that highlight the bellicose...
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Image Commemorating Naji ‘Id
While participating in jihad gives a jihadist important religious credibility, death in battle provides immortality, as the deceased is ranked...
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Image Commemorating Hamza Salim Abu Tuyur and Mahmud Fayiq Abu al-Haj
While participating in jihad gives a jihadist important religious credibility, death in battle provides immortality, as the deceased is ranked...
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Banner of shabakat al-jihad al-‘alami
Together, the two images constitute the top banner of pages on the shabakat al-jihad al-‘alami web forum. The bottom image...
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Logo of Jihadi Media Elite
The logo shown in this image appeared at the bottom of a post on the aljahad forum by a “murasil”...
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Logo of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan
The image is the logo of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) as shown on the group’s media outlet (Jundullah...
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Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) Banner
The image is the banner that appears on the website of the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU). It consists of...
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