AUTHOR’S NOTE

This is a true story. Everything in this book happened. Over the past few years, the vast majority of terrorist attacks happened on our television screens or the public places we go to. What we did not see in media reports is recorded in this book: the hundreds of women and their children who joined terrorist groups, as well as the hundreds more who dared to stand against terrorists to protect their families and communities. Women who speak up face numerous death threats. Therefore, some interviews are compressed, having taken place over multiple meetings. Some portions are not presented in the exact order of actual events. There are no composite characters; there are only sensitive sources and some people who wish to be unnamed and unknown to the public. Due to safety concerns, some names have been changed, and in some special cases (as clearly noted in the text), details of context were omitted. Ultimately, this is a personal story inside the dark world of terrorists and the survivors of war.