Free Syrian Army fighters stand at a former base used by fighters from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), after it was captured by rival rebel forces in Manbij town in Aleppo January 8, 2014. (Reuters)
Free Syrian Army fighters stand at a former base used by fighters from the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), after it was captured by rival rebel forces in Manbij town in Aleppo January 8, 2014. (Reuters) Reuters

A media group in Iraq aired on Saturday on national television a satire on the Islamic State (IS). However, to protect the cast and production people from the beheading knives of members of the extremist organisation who are the subject of the comedy, the scriptwriter is anonymous, while some actors names do not appear on the opening or closing billboard.

But Alarabiya.net named Thaer Ajyad al-Hasanawi as the show's writer.

The show, titled State of Myths, is a 30-part series that uses slapstick and punchlines. Its setting is a fictional town in Iraq that was overtaken by the Islamic State. The rules of the extremists are some of the objects that the show would poke fun at, Washington Post reports.

These includes drinking alcohol and separating the men from the women.

Khalil Ibrahim, an Iraqi actor who plays the role of town mayor, said the comedy would present to viewers the real image of fighters.

Since State of Myth is broadcast nationally, it would be viewed in areas controlled by the IS, mostly provinces in western and northern Iraq. Ibrahim said it targets both open-minded viewers from cities like Tikrit and Mosul as well as residents of IS-controlled cities in an attempt to reach those who have switched sides and are now supporting the extremists.

The cost to produce the series is $600,000.

While the IS notorious for the beheading videos of James Foley, Steven Sotloff and David Haines, since State of Myth is supposed to be family-friendly, it would only allude to these gory scenes.

The actor who plays the role of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed leader of the IS caliphate on the show, anticipates receiving death threats from jihadists once it airs. However, some of the actors are willing to take that risks because "We need to send a message of how ugly those people are," said Alwan, an actor in the show whose two real-life children were killed in extremist violent incidents.

Because of the show's aim to expose the real IS, many Iraqis believe the US, Qatar and Saudi Arabia are behind the State of the Myth. Due to complaints after the premiere telecast, show director Ali al-Kasem was ordered by Iraqi Media Network to remove American and Qatari characters in the satire.

Alarabiya.net reports that after the pilot episode, the theme song of the show, performed by JHossam al-Majed, became viral. Among its lyrics are strong lines such as: "Oh where are you, you decapitator? We prohibited all pornography except for sexual jihad ... We prohibited smoking and displaced all Christians."

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