The Islamic State cherry picks sections of the Koran and misinterprets the accounts of the Prophet Muhammad in order to wage jihad and sign up new recruits, experts say. It is estimated that 20,000 people have streamed into the territory in Iraq and Syria, where ISIS has proclaimed what it calls a 'caliphate', ruled by its often brutal version of Islamic law. The group purport to recreate the conquests and rule of the Prophet Muhammad and his successors and maintains its worst brutalities - such as beheading captives - only prove its purity in following what it contends is the prophet's example. An ISIS member parades through the streets of Raqqa in Syria waving an Islamic State flag and brandishing a gun. Experts have now said that ISIS misinterprets the Koran in order to wage jihad . But now Muslims clerics and other experts are speaking out, saying that the group hand picks what it wants from Islam's holy book, the Koran, and from accounts of Muhammad's actions and sayings, known as the Hadith. It then misinterprets many of these, while ignoring everything in the texts that contradicts those hand-picked selections. Writings by the group's clerics and its English-language online magazine, Dabiq, are full of citations from Koranic verses, the Hadith and centuries of interpreters, mostly from hardliners. But Joas Wagemakers, an assistant professor of Islamic Studies at Radboud University in the Netherlands, says these are taken far out of context by ISIS. He explained that Muslim scholars throughout history have used texts in a 'decontextualised way' to suit their purposes and says that ISIS represent the extreme. He added: 'It would be a mistake to conclude the Islamic State group's extremism is the true Islam that emerges from the Koran and Hadith. Muslim clerics say ISIS just hand picks certain parts of the Koran to boost their cause while ignoring other parts that contradict their selections . Meanwhile Khaled Abou El Fadl, an Islamic law scholar at the University of California, says despite its claims to the contrary, ISIS is a largely political group, borne out of the conflicts of Syria and Iraq. He said: 'The group is trying to make God a co-conspirator in a genocidal project.' Ahmed al-Dawoody, an assistant professor at the Institute for Islamic World Studies at Zayed University in Dubai, agreed. He added that the phenomenon of reading religious sources out of context has existed throughout the ages. He explained: 'We should not grant any legitimacy to those who violate Islam, then hijack it and speak on its behalf. 'This is not Islamic terror, this is terror committed by Muslims.' Muslim clerics also say that while misreading some texts, ISIS also ignore certain Koranic verses which promote mercy, preservation of life and protection of innocents, all of which are binding under Islamic Shariah law. It is estimated that 20,000 people have streamed into the territory in Iraq and Syria, where ISIS has proclaimed what it calls a 'caliphate' Many mainstream clerics compare the group to the Khawarij, an early sect that was so notorious for 'takfir,' or declaring other Muslims heretics for even simple sins, that it was rejected by the faith. Part of the problem in countering the group's ideology is that moderate clerics have struggled to come up with a cohesive, modern interpretation, especially of the Koranic verses connected to Muhammad's wars with his enemies. Militants often point to the Koran's ninth sura, or chapter, which includes calls for Muslims to 'fight polytheists wherever you find them' and to subdue Christians and Jews until they pay a tax. Moderate clerics counter that these verses are linked to specifics of the time and note other verses that say there is 'no force in religion.' And while moderate clerics disagree with the Islamic State group's interpretation point-by-point, at times they accept the same ideals. Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, the grand imam of Egypt's Al-Azhar, one of Sunni Islam's most prestigious seats of learning, denounced the burning of the Jordanian pilot as a violation of Islam. But then he called for the perpetrators to be subjected to the same punishment that ISIS prescribes for those who 'wage war on Islam' - crucifixion, death or the amputation of hands and legs. There are citations in the Hadith of Muhammad of ordering beheadings, and verses in the Koran setting out rules for dealing with slaves. Most Muslims denounced the burning of a Jordanian pilot as a violation of Islam with some calling for the perpetrators to be subjected to the same punishment . Pivoting off these, ISIS contends that anyone who rejects beheadings or enslavement is not a real Muslim and has been corrupted by modern Western ideas. One ISIS cleric, Sheikh Hussein bin Mahmoud, wrote a vehement defence of beheadings after the killing of American journalist James Foley. He wrote: 'Those who pervert Islam are not those who cut off the heads of disbelievers and terrorise them but those who want (Islam) to be like Mandela or Gandhi, with no killing, no fighting, no blood or striking necks. 'Islam is the religion of battle, of cutting heads, of shedding blood.' To support beheadings, the group cites the Koran as calling on Muslims to 'strike the necks' of their enemies. But other clerics counter the verse means Muslim fighters should swiftly kill enemies in the heat of battle, and is not a call to execute captives. Sheikh Hamadah Nassar, a cleric in the ultraconservative Salafi movement said: 'It appears the Islamic State have adopted violent ideas first, then searched books of religious interpretation to find a cover for their actions.'
ISIS purport to recreate conquests and rule of the Prophet Muhammad . But experts say ISIS just cherry pick sections of the Koran for its cause . Add they misinterpret Islamic texts and ignore others that contradict them . Argue that ISIS are political despite claims they are a religious group . So far an estimated 20,000 people have joined the group in their territory . ISIS run a 'caliphate' under brutal conditions in parts of Iraq and Syria .