World

ISIS’ New Gold Coins Aren’t Even Real

Daily Caller News Foundation logo
Ivan Plis Reporter, Daily Caller News Foundation
Font Size:

Don’t invest all your money in Islamic State gold dinars just yet.

New reports suggest the jihadi group’s currency, which it calls a “blow to the capitalist financial system of enslavement,” is not pure gold as the group claims.

Niqash, a Germany-based journalism outfit covering Iraq, reported Thursday that goldsmiths and traders inside Islamic State-held territory claim the “dinar” actually consists of metal coins that are merely plated with 21-carat gold. (RELATED: Top Iraqi Officer Was ON VACATION When ISIS Moved In Last Year)

Islamic State had promoted its new currency in a 55-minute video released in late August. Condemning the U.S. Federal Reserve as a “Satanic financial system,” it took great pains to explain the evils of capitalism and monetary interest while advocating the restoration of gold-backed money.

The group’s propagandists borrowed heavily from U.S. news footage, including a clip of former Rep. Ron Paul raising concerns in 2007 about the dollar’s potential weakness. They also used segments of American and European movies to illustrate their narrative about the West’s military and financial imperialism toward Muslims.

Niqash’s correspondent suggests that the unveiling of the gold dinar is an act of desperation for a jihadi group that is struggling to implement its all-encompassing lifestyle on unwilling “citizens.” In Mosul, the largest Iraqi city Islamic State holds, a government embargo on money flowing into the city has caused the group’s leaders to seek creative solutions. (RELATED: ISIS’ New Shock Video Shows Just How Desperate They Are)

But residents of Mosul, who are effectively hostages in their own city, are desperate too. While Niqash reports “nobody is falling for it so far,” their contacts in the city say that “many locals… had been considering exchanging some of their own money for the new dinars.”

Follow Ivan Plis on Twitter

Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.

All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.