City of Ghosts_cinema

Considering how often IS make the news, chances are you only know one thing about them: that they’re mass-murdering scumbags.

Perhaps that’s enough for you; but, through a group of citizen journalists who were forced to flee Syria when IS took over the town of Raqqa, City of Ghosts tells the story of what it’s like to live under their control.

Forever on the move thanks to threats on their lives via social media, this young group run their operation, dubbed Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently, from smartphones and laptops in flats across Europe. No sooner have they settled somewhere – Gaziantep in Turkey, for example, or Berlin – than the threats catch up with them and they have to find somewhere new. As one of the group says, “a camera is more powerful than a weapon” – and thanks to friends back in Syria who have remained undiscovered, some of the footage they smuggle out is shockingly captivating. Scenes of the Caliphate Cubs – kids as young as five who chant IS songs and are encouraged to practise beheading their stuffed toys – will stay with you long after the end credits.

It all makes the scenes of an anti-immigrant rally in Germany particularly hard to take, but the bravery, spirit and hope on display make this an essential watch.