article_snippet: The general picture provided by foreign fighters of their lives in Syria suggests camaraderie, good morale and purposeful activity, all mixed in with a sense of understated heroism, designed to attract their friends as well as to boost their own self-esteem,
article_snippet: " counterterrorism expert Richard Barrett wrote last year in a report called "Foreign fighters in Syria.
article_snippet: Fawaz Gerges, professor of Middle East studies at The London School of Economics, put it more bluntly: .
article_snippet: That type of brainwashing is what turned Canadian Damian Clairmont into an ISIS militant, said Canadian Damian Clairmont mother, Christianne Boudreau.
article_snippet: Canadian Damian Clairmont died fighting in Syria last year.
article_snippet: CNN's Josh Levs, Joshua Berlinger, Paula Newton, Jethro Mullen, Catherine E. Shoichet, Mariano Castillo, Laura Koran and Elise Labott contributed to a report called "Foreign fighters in Syria.