Thanks to Islamic State, May most violent month of 2017: More than 1,000 casualties claimed

May has been the most violent month of the year. Starting with killing of five policemen and two bank guards in south Kashmir’s Kulgam district on 1 May, the month ended with 80 people being killed in a major blast in Kabul near the diplomatic district, including the Indian mission.

The attacks, where many terror organisations were involved, were largely attributed to Islamic State and the Taliban. The month began with the attack by Jaish-e-Mohammad in Kashmir. On 2 May, Islamic State militants killed at least 37 Iraqi refugees and wounded 100 others heading to a refugee camp in Syria near the borders with Iraq.

On 3 May, eight people were killed and 28 more were injured when a suicide car bomber detonated next to a convoy of NATO vehicles near the US embassy in Kabul. On 9 May, Islamic State members executed 47 of their prisoners in Kirkuk’s Hawija in Iraq, including 12 of their comrades.

21 May witnessed four different attacks by Islamic State in three different countries — Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan — and claimed lives of at least 70 civilians.

Many such attacks continued throughout the month across the world, including Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan but on 22 May came the Manchester attack. Thought to be a suicide blast at first, it was later ascertained that the bomb went off while the attacker was detonating it.

The blast killed 22 people and Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack. It was during the live concert of US pop sensation Adriane Grande. Even though Wednesday’s (31 May) Kabul attack and 22 May Manchester attack were covered by media the most, the month of May witnessed more than 1,000 killings.

However, experts have said that the Islamic State has vowed to transform the month of Ramadan into a month of unparalleled bloodshed.

In 2015, just before Ramadan began, an Islamic State spokesperson had said , “Aspire to battle in this noble month … make Ramadan a month of disasters for the unbelievers.” And in many cases, its supporters are helping them do so.

An Islamic State supporter told The Atlantic, “Ramadan is the holy month of jihad. People want to win the honour of attaining martyrdom in Ramadan.”

Adding perspective to this narrative, a former extremist said , “What they are doing is not jihad in any sense according to Islamic tradition. I would counter by saying that just as one receives multiplied rewards for good deeds in Ramadan, they receive multiplied bad deeds for sins. So what of the person who spends the sacred month of Ramadan oppressing people and killing innocents?”

With the attack in Manchester and the killing of 28 Coptic Christians in Egypt on 26 May, terrorism researchers were worried that this year’s Ramadan could once again see a flurry of attacks. What confirms these fears is the 12-minute statement by Abul Hasan al-Muhajir. Recorded in Arabic, Abul Hasan could be heard calling for attacks and repeating that civilians in the West are legitimate targets.