This summer, Foreign Policy contributors Harald Dornboos and Jenan Moussa were given rare access to an unusual source of information on the Islamic State: the laptop of one of the jihadist organization's fighters. The laptop -- initially captured by moderate Syrian rebels from an IS hideout in the Syrian province of Idlib -- contained more than 35,347 files in 2,367 folders. Here, FP looks at its contents, which provide a glimpse into the digital life of an IS fighter -- from bomb-making guides to playlists of Western pop, rousing Islamist speeches to recipes for banana mousse.
Above, a page from an explosives-making guide found on the laptop.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
Above, the laptop itself, which belonged to a Tunisian fighter named Muhammed S.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
A slide from a manual on ricin production.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
Files containing guides and manuals on explosives and chemical compounds.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
One of several documents describing the preparation and use of PETN, an ingredient in the plastic explosive Semtex.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
A folder from Muhammed S.'s laptop.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
A slide from a bomb-making guide.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
Not all guides on the laptop were for bomb-making. Pictured above are recipes for caramel, banana mousse, and cake.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
A screenshot of a January 2010 playlist on Muhammed S.'s laptop, with songs from Shaggy, Céline Dion, and the Black Eyed Peas.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
Some images on the laptop show Muhammed S. in Tunisia, prior to his radicalization.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
Muhammed S. in Tunisia, 2010.
Courtesy Harald Dornboos/Jenan Moussa
