The Netherlands has banned the black flag of jihad ahead of a large demonstration scheduled for today in Amsterdam to support Hamas against Israel. The flag is used by various jihadi groups, including Al Qaeda, Jabhat al-Nusra, Islamic Jihad and the Islamic State (IS), formerly known as the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

A spokesman for the police said, "Nazi symbols, Hitler salutes and burning flags will not be tolerated. The same applies to the ISIS flag. Demonstrators may not carry it."

A demonstration at The Hague in the Netherlands on July 24 featured the Islamic State flag alongside chants of "death to the Jews," prompting 17,500 people to sign a petition calling on the mayor of The Hague to resign, as he had failed to clampdown on the use of the flag.

The use of the flag has not gone unnoticed. In an article titled "ISIS's Black Flags Are Flying in Europe,” the Daily Beast  commented that the Islamic State’s European “message was one tailored to the disaffected young descendants of Muslim immigrants in Europe”.

Increased visibility of support shows an increased boldness in the adherents of its radical doctrine.
Holland is not the only country in Europe to have witnessed support for the Islamic State. At a pro-Palestinian demonstration in London last week, the black flag of jihad was flown, as demonstrators blocked traffic by stopping their cars in a traffic tunnel, waving jihadi flags and chanting.

In March, German security forces carried out a wide-ranging operation against domestic operatives of the Islamic State (ISIS). Security forces raided 10 houses across Berlin, Bonn and Frankfurt. Two men and one woman were arrested: a man with German citizenship from Berlin, a Turkish citizen in Frankfurt and a woman with joint German-Polish citizenship in Bonn. The men are accused of being members of the Islamic State and the woman of funding the organization.

According to reports in Arabic media, demonstrations were staged by Islamic State supporters across Germany on July 30. They rallied in favor of the terrorist group and its leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, now styling himself Caliph Ibrahim.

Although reports from the rally are unclear, it is known that police intervened at some point, subduing the demonstrators with batons and tear gas. Islamic State supporters fought the police, ultimately leading to their arrests.

Judging by the Islamic State's actions and declarations so far, it seems implausible that the presence of its flag at demonstrations across the continent is not merely a passing phase.

British Muslims have been travelling to Syria to join ISIS and wage jihad for some time. In June 2014, two 20-year olds from Wales were identified in a propaganda video urging British Muslims to go to Syria and join ISIS. It is estimated that more British citizens joined the Islamic State this year than joined the British Army reserve, despite a fresh recruitment drive.

Dutch authorities are also worried about the security threat posed by jihadists returning from Syria.
Meanwhile, the Islamic State is continuing to consolidate its power in areas of Iraq and Syria under its control and is currently advancing into Kurdish-controlled areas on the Syrian-Turkish border.