ISIS prepares for the ‘end of the world’ as US troops circle ancient town which Muhammad predicted would be the site of the final battle
Turkish, US special forces and rebel troops said to be just three miles from Dabiq, Syria
ISIS is preparing for the end as a coalition of forces close in on the Syrian town of Dabiq.
But it is not the end of the town's defence but the end of the world itself that the terror group is expecting - in line with a bizarre ancient prophecy.
The vile organisation’s fanatical fighters believe that a great battle in a field outside the town will signal Armageddon.
They believe the Prophet Muhammed told his followers hundreds of years ago that “the last hour will not come" until an Islamic army vanquished “the Romans” there.
Many of ISIS’s followers interpret the modern version of the Roman Empire to be the US, or the West more generally.
And it is now believed that American special forces troops are among those advancing on the town, just north of Aleppo.
Around 300 elite soldiers have been reported to be in the country this month.
Some of those are deployed alongside Turkish forces which crossed the border to combat the jihadis.
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A column of Turkish tanks advanced into northern Syria two weeks ago, with US officials confirming their mission was to support a rebel assault on Dabiq.
The combined forces are now said to be just three miles from the town.
And ISIS fighters are now welcoming the fulfilment of their cherished prophecy.
Their theory predicted that "nations gathering under 80 flags will confront the Muslim armies".
Dabiq: Gateway to the jihadi apocalypse
- Dabiq is a small town in north-eastern Syria near the Turkish border.
- The town had a population of just 3,000 people in 2004.
- The Sunni Muslim story dates back more than 1,300 years and tells of the "horde" from 80 nations being defeated by the armies of Islam, triggering the end of days.
- It has become central to ISIS dogma – with the group even naming their propaganda magazine after the town.
- The Prophet Mohammed is said to have predicted the battle himself, according to his companion Abu Hurayrah.
- Mohammed himself is said to have declared 1,400 years ago: "The last hour will not come until the Romans arrived in al-A'maq or Dabiq, and an army consisting of the best people on earth in those days will hasten them from Medina."
This led many jihadists to rejoice at the broad coalition of countries uniting against them.
Hence the more ISIS is bombarded and attacked from all sides, the more the fanatics who follow it look to their final victory.
Shadi Hamid, a fellow at the Brookings Institute, told : “It raises morale.
“It is fair to assume that the vast majority of (IS) fighters believe in this type of talk.”
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