One in seven young Brits have ‘warm feelings’ towards ISIS: poll

One in seven young adults in the UK have “warm feelings” towards the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militant group, a poll quoted by London-based newspaper The Times reported on Friday.

The pro-extremist leanings suggested by the poll - particularly among under-25-year-olds – are due to anti-political sentiments and an admiration for the bravado shown by the fighters, academics quoted by the daily said.

The poll, which asked 2,000 adults to rank several nations and extremist groups on a scale of one to ten, is the most thorough survey undertaken yet on ISIS’s impact in the UK, according to The Times.

In addition to what experts believe are a core of Islamists answering favorably, the poll likely shows the feelings of many non-Muslims who disapprove of the British government.

The apparent support of ISIS among Britain’s young adults can be put down to three reasons: ignorance of foreign affairs, distrust of mainstream media, and a feeling of rebellion against “the establishment,” Marat Shterin, senior lecturer in sociology of religion at King’s College London told The Times.

The poll “does go some way toward explaining why we have actually got five British citizens going away looking for jihad every week and we have got at least 500 over there already,” said Clive Field, director of the British Religion in Numbers project at the University of Manchester.