In a new seven-part podcast series, Bloodlines, BBC Sounds and CBC Podcasts delve into the life of Dure Ahmed, the former wife of El Shafee Elsheikh, a high-profile ISIS fighter serving eight life sentences in a US high-security prison. Hosted by BBC Asian Network journalist Poonam Taneja, the series was triggered by the search for Salmaan, a missing three-year-old grandchild of a British citizen, in the ruins of the Islamic State.
Taneja encountered Ahmed in a Syrian detention camp. Ahmed, who has been repatriated to Canada and is currently involved in legal proceedings, provided crucial information about Salmaan’s last known location. Over the course of the series, Ahmed details her relationship with Elsheikh, her life under ISIS, and her experiences in the Syrian detention camp. Ahmed insists she was not radicalized but was a “dumb girl in love,” a claim that Taneja challenges.
The series is expected to provide an in-depth look at daily life under ISIS rule through Ahmed’s lens, who claims she was isolated and abused by Elsheikh. Ahmed eventually found refuge in a women’s guest house post-divorce and her return to Canada has sparked legal debates concerning her knowledge of her ex-husband’s terrorist activities.
