Why do jihadis weep so much, and what does this tell us? I have a new article (ungated!) in the Journal of Islamic Studies that looks in depth at these questions https://academic.oup.com/jis/article/31/3/358/5905072
@OUPReligion #openaccess 1/x

Of course, it's not surprising that jihadis should be crying, as devotional weeping is a common Islamic practice. The taboo on male weeping is a post-18C European thing. But I wanted to know whether people weep more or differently in these clandestine groups 2/x

You might ask how we can even know what they're doing behind closed doors. But there are lots of sources; bear in mind that these guys have been filming themselves for 40 years. You also have defector autobiographies offering non-propagandistic thick description 3/x

The sources suggest jihadis are strikingly teary-eyed even in an Islamic context. They weep often, ostentatiously, and together. Crying is encouraged, applauded, and even showcased in propaganda. They've essentially semi-ritualized it 4/x

We see them cry in six main types of situations: in prayer, during sermons, when listening to hymns, pre- and post-combat, on losing comrades, and upon seeing civilian Muslim suffering 5/x

Clearly these are ideologically sanctioned behaviours. You don't see them cry because they hurt their leg or miss their mothers. The crying patterns reflect their view of what an ideal mujahid should be like 6/x

Here's what's interesting: the liberal weeping places jihadis closer to sufis and Shiites - enemies of theirs - than to salafis. Weeping is sanctioned in all traditions, but some, like Sufis and Shiites, do it more. Meanwhile quietist salafis frown on ostentatious weeping 7/x

This adds to mounting evidence that the sufi-salafi distinction is not nearly as sharp as it's often made out to be, and that the view of modern jihadis as extreme salafis is reductive. David Cook, Meir Hatina, others have made the same observation 8/x

But why have they cultivated weeping and not toned it down? I don't know. It could be that it offers operational benefits for clandestine groups, for example by helping reduce stress, improve group cohesion, and screen personnel for commitment 9/x

It could also be a bid for authenticity and legitimacy, since the image of the weeping mujahid goes back centuries, and jihadis are famously obsessed with the emulation of heroes of early Islamic history 10/x

What does this matter? Well, it helps rethink our analytical categories. And it highlights the centrality of emotions inside radical groups. Perhaps it also helps show the fluidity of weeping norms & warrior ethics. The "stoic soldier" is probably not the historical rule /END