An Iraqi woman is fast turning out to be an individual most dreaded by the Islamic State group — also known as Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (Isis) or Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) — because she is paying them back in their own coin in her quest to exact revenge on them.
The 39-year-old woman, named Wahida Mohamed Al Jumaily, has had several of her close relatives, including father, husband and three brothers, killed by Isis over the past couple of years. In fact, her husband was killed earlier this year, which seems to be trigger for her current action against Isis members.
Jumaily, who seems to be better known as Um Hanadi among those who have come in contact with her, has already been compared to "Iraq's Rambo" Abu Azrael, because of the similarities in their efforts to push Isis out of Iraq and regain the country for its residents.
Jumaily leads a militia group of 70-odd people against Isis, and has reportedly not only decapitated members of the terrorist organisation but also cooked their heads, in a show of strength that is matched by what Isis itself does to many of its prisoners. She has even posted these photos on social media platforms.
Isis, which follows a strict interpretation of Islamic law, preaches that jihadists, who are often promised 72 virgins in heaven for fighting the holy war, cannot even get into the hallowed realm if they are killed by women. Thus, Jumaily and her group, which operates from a base less than 100 km from Mosul, are a dreaded presence in the area.
And so, the group wants to kill her. In an interview to CNN, she said: "I'm at the top of their most wanted list, even more than the prime minister. Six times they tried to assassinate me. I have shrapnel in my head and legs, my ribs were broken, but all that didn't stop me from fighting." However, she considers her biggest achievement to be a death threat coming personally from Isis chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
Threats and attacks notwithstanding, she and her group are continuing their stand against Isis.
