US news crew spotlights ISIS in TT

The involvement of some TT nationals in terrorist activities has attracted the attention of incoming US Ambassador Joseph Mondello and has also raised concerns among the public in the United States.

These concerns prompted an American news team to visit the TT in July to interview government officials and former ISIS associates to get a first-hand look at the situation.

The team of the weekly news show, Full Measure with Sharyl Atkisson, visited TT in July after reaching out to a Newsday reporter to assist them in organising interviews and gathering information on the prevalence of ISIS on the island.

The show which airs every Sunday on the Sinclair Broadcast Group, which includes ABC, CBS, Fox and CW networks, focuses on a variety of topics around the world.

The team led by Emmy award-winning journalist Scott Thuman interviewed Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi, leader of the Islamic Front Umar Abdullah and others as part of their hour-long episode which is expected to air on Sunday afternoon. Orchard said in order to get a full and accurate understanding of the presence of ISIS in Trinidad, it was necessary to interview stakeholders from as many different backgrounds as possible.

Newsday spoke to Full Measure's senior producer Mark Orchard in June who said the team's visit was aimed at giving viewers in the US a first-hand account of the situation in TT, without relying on the information from government officials.

He also sought to assure local and US viewers that the views of everyone participating in their interviews will be included in the final footage, as they wanted to provide an accurate account of the prevalence of Islamic radicalism in TT.

"There's never a substitute for seeing a situation first hand. Like everyone else, we'd heard the stories about proportionately large number of Trinidadians travelling to ISIS controlled areas in the Middle East so we came to see for ourselves why that happened and what the government is doing about it.

For his part, Thuman said the show did not intend to give a negative portrayal of TT and said they also filmed a short documentary on the Pitch Lake at La Brea, to highlight a more positive aspect of life in TT.

"I’d heard the statistics but it wasn’t until we started investigating that we saw the full extent of the problem. Recent moves by the Government to tighten laws made this the ideal time to come and do this story."

Despite the recent attention on the subject, Thuman says the general feeling among US citizens is one of intrigue than fear.

"Most people are so surprised to hear the story they are more curious than concerned."