The following are some of this week's reports from the MEMRI Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM) Project, which translates and analyzes content from sources monitored around the clock – among them the most important jihadi websites and blogs. (To view these reports in full, you must be a paying member of the JTTM; for membership information, send an email to [email protected] with "Membership" in the subject line.)
MEMRI offers an additional option for jihad and terrorism news – the Global Jihad News (GJN) website. Access is by annual subscription, available for $360 at the MEMRI E-Store.
Note to media and government: For a full copy of these reports, send an email with the title of the report in the subject line to [email protected]. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.
Jihadi Media Company Releases Arabic Translation Of U.S. Army Handbook On Combating Terrorism
On February 28, 2013, Fursan Al-Balagh – an online media company that specializes in translating jihadi materials into various languages – released an Arabic translation of a U.S. Army handbook on counterterrorism titled "A Soldier's Primer to Terrorism: Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures in Complex Operational Environments." The English booklet was published by by TRISA, a subdivision of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command (TRADOC). Fursan Al-Balagh translated its third edition, from 2012.
AQAP Releases 'Mujahid Pocketbook' For Lone Wolves Living In West, U.S.
On March 2, 2013, the Al-Malahem Foundation, the media wing of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAO) released an exclusive publication titled "Lone Mujahid Pocketbook." According its cover page, the publication is "a step to step [sic] guide on how to become a successful lone mujahid." The contents of the guide, which was published on the leading jihadi forum Al-Fida', have been gleaned from previous issues of AQAP's English-language magazine Inspire, the last issue of which was released two days ago.
Online Jihadi Media Company Fursan Al-Balagh Reaches Out For New Recruits
On February 24, 2013, the online jihadi media company Fursan Al-Balagh announced it was opening its doors for new applicants to join its ranks. The announcement said the company had decided to reach out in search of prospective candidates rather than wait for the latter to reach out to it, in order to find those "soldiers" who would work on strengthening the crucial front of jihadi media. Prospective recruits, said the announcement, must exhibit a great deal of honesty, commitment to the cause, teamwork, initiative, and confidentiality, among others.
AQAP Announces Termination Of Its Online Recruitment Campaign For Security Reasons
On March 3, 2013, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) announced that it is discontinuing its "Convoys of Martyrs" campaign for the online recruitment of fighters and suicide bombers. The campaign, launched in June 2012, enabled applicants to contact AQAP using an encryption program and offer themselves as operatives.
Issue X of AQAP's English-Language Magazine 'Inspire' Exhibits Special Focus on France, Warns It: 'Woe Upon You from Tens of Muhammad Merah[s]!'
On February 28, 2013, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) released issue X of its English-language online magazine Inspire. The issue includes excerpts from an exclusive interview with American-born Al-Qaeda operative Adam Gadahn, as well as a letter by American jihadi Samir Khan, who was killed in Yemen in September 2011 in a U.S. drone strike.
Article In Inspire X Declares: Neglecting Jihad Without Proper Reason Is A Grave Sin
On February 28, 2013, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) released issue X of its English-language online magazine Inspire. One of the articles published in this issue addresses the importance of jihad, the rewards of which Allah has preserved for the mujahideen.
Jihad Archive Website Offers Offline Version Of Its Website Content
On February 21, 2013, the jihad archive website (jarchive.net) offered online jihadis the option of downloading an offline version of its website content, allowing jihadis to access the jihad archive content without the need for an Internet connection. The offline version includes content released on the site updated to August 20, 2012. Jihad archive provided options to download the version either as a single 1.14 GB file, or as four smaller-sized ones.
Taliban Interlocutor Akbar Agha: The Taliban's Demand For Enforcement Of Islamic Shari'a In Afghanistan Is 'Not Negotiable'
Akbar Agha (right) seen with journalist Munaizee Jahangir
Syed Muhammad Akbar Agha heads the Jaishul Muslemeen, a faction of the Afghan Taliban which he formed in 2004. He was imprisoned for kidnapping three UN workers in Afghanistan, but was pardoned in 2009 by Afghan President Hamid Karzai, in the latter's bid to forge peace talks with the Taliban and other militant groups. The former Taliban leader is a cousin of Mullah Muhammad Syed Tayyab Agha, who has emerged as the Taliban's chief negotiator during talks between the U.S. and the Afghan Taliban. At his office in Kabul, Syed Muhammad Akbar Agha spoke to a Pakistani journalist, revealing Taliban positions regarding the peace talks and their goal of shari'a enforcement in Afghanistan.
Following are excerpts from the interview:
Syed Muhammad Akbar Agha "Formed The Breakaway Taliban Faction Of Jaishul Muslemeen, Which Carried Out Frequent Attacks On NATO Supplies"
"Akbar Agha is a cousin of Mullah Muhammad Syed Tayyab Agha, former chief of staff of elusive Taliban supremo Mullah Omar and currently the chief peace negotiator of the militia. In 2004, Akbar Agha formed the breakaway Taliban faction of Jaishul Muslemeen, which carried out frequent attacks on NATO supplies. He believes the U.S. military wants talks with their boots on the Taliban's neck. 'Peace negotiations can begin only if all international troops pull out of Afghanistan,' he [said]…."
Pakistani Taliban Video Shows Anti-Army Operations In South Waziristan
Taliban militants in South Waziristan, mid-2012
A video released by Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP or the Movement of Pakistani Taliban) shows the Taliban militants attacking Pakistani security forces in South Waziristan, a tribal district bordering Afghanistan. The video, which is 50:30 in duration, is aimed at contesting Pakistani claims of successes against the Taliban in Waziristan; it was produced by the TTP's Umar Media sometime in July 2012 and released on a jihadi Internet forum a few days ago.
Online Jihadi Posts 'Miami Herald' Reporter's Pictures Of Gitmo Prisoners, Claiming They Were Leaked By Prison Guard
On February 24, 2013, Abu Al-Fida' Al-Ansari, an active member of the leading jihadi forum Al-Fida', published new pictures of Guantanamo prisoners which he claimed were leaked by a prison guard. The four pictures, which were, in fact, captured by a Miami Herald reporter and authorized for publication in that newspaper, show unidentified prisoners apparently in prayer, lined up behind an Imam. Al-Ansari gave no further information about the pictures, which bear the logo of "Lajnat Masajid Al-Karm," or "Committee of Al-Karm's Mosques," a Salafi-jihadi Facebook group.
