THE WOMEN OF THE ISLAMIC STATE: An oped in the Wall Street Journal today discusses radical Islam’s growing appeal among some women:

Why do these young women and girls go? Surely they can see that life is far more just and liberated in the West?

The short answer is that Islamic State is highly effective at analyzing its target audience and tailoring its propaganda to them . . . . The group is especially adept at exploiting Muslim women who feel isolated, perhaps as a result of anti-Muslim hatred, domestic turbulence, gender inequality or the lack of representation in society. As an alternative, they are offered a strong narrative of Islamist ideology, with suggestions that by joining Islamic State they can reverse the ills of life outside the caliphate. They are enticed by the idea that they will find a tight-knit collective sisterhood there that will provide them with support and friendship. This new Islamic life, in turn, is eventually used as a means to justify their radicalization and sacrifice. . . .

Now with the advent of the female suicide bomber Wednesday morning, we are potentially seeing Islamic State synthesize the idea of women as state builders into the idea of them as operational spearheads too—another luring and dangerous appeal to idealistic young women. We may now see women actively targeted and recruited by Islamic State for specific terrorist violence rather than just “state building.” History shows that the allure of physically taking up arms is not limited to men. Recall that the core operatives of Germany’s Baader-Meinhoff gang in the 1970s were women.

Recruiting women in such roles holds a tactical appeal for Islamic State and raises new security challenges for Western officials. Female terrorists can sometimes avoid detection more easily than men, and are less likely to be stopped and searched. Concealing weaponry or physical signs of trepidation before an attack—warning signs that security forces look for—can be achieved by wearing appropriate clothing. . . . .

So Muslim women want to join the “tight-knit collective sisterhood” and become a “spearhead” for misogynist men who view them as little more than property? Um, okay. So ISIS is basically an institutional form of a sociopathic predator:  It lies, lies, lies to get the target “hooked,” with visions of love/grandeur, with the goal of using/abusing them for its own selfish needs.