My Journey into the Heart of Terror: Ten Days in the Islamic State is a 2016 memoir by German journalist Jürgen Todenhöfer. Todenhöfer was the first western journalist to travel to the self-proclaimed Islamic State (ISIS), alternatively known as ISIL, to find out the cause of the fighting in Iraq and Syria.^[1][2] He describes the experience he and his son went through during the journey in his memoir. Todenhöfer rejects the description 'Islamic terrorism' and considers the acts of ISIS fighters as non-Islamic.^[3]

Jürgen Todenhöfer is a German journalist, and a former judge and politician. He had previously met with leaders of the Mujahedeen in Soviet-occupied Afghanistan and the Taliban and al-Qaeda. He also visited Bashar al-Assad, President of Syria, several times in 2012.^[2]

In the summer of 2014, Todenhӧfer sent a message on Facebook to more than 80 German ISIS soldiers asking whether he could visit the ISIS fighting cadre. His goal was to understand the motivations of ISIS.^[2] On September 9, Abu Qatadah, a 31-year-old German, answered the message. They had Skype discussions for several months. Finally, Todenhӧfer received a document from the Caliphate guaranteeing his safety.^[2] In October 2014, Todenhӧfer became the first western journalist to travel to ISIS-controlled territory. He was accompanied by his filmmaker son, Frederic.^[1]

Todenhöfer wrote that he stayed with an ISIS soldier who was armed with a Kalashnikov rifle. The soldier told him that he was sure to return home alive because ISIS wanted to be accepted as a state, so he had the guarantee of safety from their leadership. Todenhӧfer spent most of his time in Mosul, Iraq but he also visited ISIS-controlled cities in Syria such as Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor.^[4]

• Human rights in ISIL-controlled territory