Paying IS

From Yahoo:
"IS group tightens its grip on Mosul residents"

Freedom from the Islamic State group comes at a steep price, as one newly wedded couple recently discovered. Eager to live a normal life, away from the harsh dominion of the militants' self-styled caliphate, the young pair is searching for ways to bypass the extremists' newly-implemented departure taxes and escape the IS-held city of Mosul. "Do they really want me to give up the house my father spent years building to an Afghani or Chechen or to an Iraqi villager so that I can leave for good? They are dreaming," the 29-year old groom said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals. Most of his family had already fled last June when a shocking Islamic State blitz overran Mosul, but he stayed behind to protect his family home. Fearing the city might simply empty of civilians, or that fleeing residents may join the fight against them, the Islamic State extremists are imposing tough measures to prevent people from leaving their territory. Several residents, who spoke to The Associated Press by telephone on condition of anonymity to ensure their safety, said anyone seeking to leave must submit the title for their family home or car — if the vehicle is worth more than $20,000 — to be granted permission to leave for two weeks. If they fail to return within that period, their property will be confiscated. The Islamic State group, which now controls about a third of Syria and Iraq, first banned all former police and army officers from leaving, for fear they would join the fight against IS-rule. Then the restrictions were tightened to allow only patients with urgent medical requirements or retirees who need to collect their pensions outside the city. In late February, the requirement for travelers to turn over their home or car title was imposed. Mosul residents are watching with keen interest the ongoing offensive by the Iraqi army and allied Shiite militiamen to dislodge the Islamic State group from Saddam Hussein's hometown of Tikrit, about 200 kilometers (124 miles) southeast of Mosul. The retaking of Tikrit is seen as a crucial test for the Iraqi troops and a key step toward the ultimate recapture of Mosul. The Iraqi forces entered Tikrit for the first time on Wednesday, from the north and south, and by Thursday, they were fighting their way through the city, along two fronts, hoping to reach the center within three to four days, according to commanders on the front-lines. Meanwhile, in Mosul — Iraq's second largest city — many residents feel they have no choice but to endure under Islamic State rule. "I can't leave here with my family because I have no other source for living," said a Mosul resident and father of four who sells wholesale cosmetics. "Every day when I come back home, I lock the house door on my family."  The restrictions apply only for those wishing to head south into government-held Iraq; residents can still travel to and from Turkey. Those leaving for urgent medical reasons now also have to provide collateral, and can only leave if their claim is approved by a special medical committee made up of IS-loyalist doctors.

 

 

^ While I feel for those trapped living under IS' rule you have to like the irony in all of this. IS is supposed to stand for anti-Western, pro-Islamist (albeit extremist) values, but in reality they are following in the long line of groups (ie Al-Qaeda) that say they are against the capitalist/Western system and yet here they are making people pay thousands of dollars to leave. The Communist dictatorships were the same way (they were more capitalists than most of the West.) I guess IS knows its days are numbered and just want to have enough money to live in exile in a cave with all the technology and creature-comforts they are accustomed to. ^

 

 

http://news.yahoo.com/group-tightens-grip-mosul-residents-064137341.html