"They killed us. They called us infidels. They bothered us a lot even in our homes. They doubted us. We supported them and they doubted us," Reuters quoted an exasperated young man as saying. The former Daesh member showed what appears to be the group's ID card to support his story.
The authenticity of the footage has not been independently verified.
Daesh reached the peak of its power in mid-2014, when the group established a caliphate on large swathes of Iraq and neighboring Syria under its control. Its blitz offensives and seemingly unstoppable advance narrated via professionally edited videos attracted thousands of recruits from all over the world.
However, the terrorist organization has suffered major setbacks, particularly after Russia launched its vigorous counterterrorism campaign aimed at helping Damascus to tackle a foreign-sponsored insurgency in Syria. Daesh's revenues have also taken a hit due to a significant decrease in its illegal oil trade.
These developments suggest that Daesh is gripped with fear and "paranoia," Professor Ryan Mauro, a national security analyst for the Clarion Project, told RT. More so, this means that Daesh fighters are feeling the pressure, which is a positive trend, he added.
Last week, Daesh publicly executed more than 20 of its own militants for trying to desert. The execution took place in Mosul, the second largest Iraqi city that has been Daesh stronghold since June 2014.
