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 jttmsubs@memri.org with "Membership" in the subject line.)
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 media@memri.org. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.
Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the emir of the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria, reportedly spent "considerable time" in Afghanistan during the reign of the Taliban government (1996-2001), which was headed by Mullah Mohammad Omar, according to an Afghan media report. The Islamic State (IS) is the new name of the jihadi group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS),
While in Afghanistan, Al-Baghdadi "served as a member of the Ishaq Group" – a militant group, according to the report. He lived with the same group in Kabul as Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi, the slain leader of Al-Qaeda's branch in Iraq.
EXCLUSIVE: Al-Baghdadi-Led Islamic State (IS) Tweets In Urdu For Audiences In Pakistan And India
Abu Bakr Al-Baghadi is described as Emir-ul-Momineen (Leader of the Faithful)
The Islamic State led by jihadist commander Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi is tweeting jihadi text, audio and video content in Urdu on Twitter, aimed at Urdu-speaking audiences in Pakistan and India. Reports indicate that Muslim youth from both countries have joined the jihad in Iraq. The Islamic State (IS) is the new name for the jihadist group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) whose leader Al-Baghdadi declared himself as the caliph of all Muslims worldwide on June 29 after capturing several Iraqi cities earlier in the month.
EXCLUSIVE: Canadian IS Fighter Boasts Of Helping Canadians Reach Syria
Background
Abu Turaab's profile picture
A young Canadian is currently fighting in Syria alongside the Islamic State (IS). His Twitter account was opened on June 28, 2014, and at the time of this writing already includes 239 tweets. Al-Kanadi frequently shares photos, offering a glimpse into the world of jihad. It appears that Al-Kanadi is stationed in Raqqah, the IS stronghold in northeastern Syria.
Abu Muslim
On July 12, 2014, the Islamic State (IS), via its media company Al-Hayat, released a video featuring Abu Muslim, aka Andre Poulin, a Canadian IS fighter from Timmins, Ontario, who died in August 2013 during the battle over the Menagh Air Base in Aleppo Governorate.
In his posthumous appearance, Abu Muslim speaks about his life while in Canada, and says that he was like every other normal Canadian who enjoyed watching hockey and fishing, among other things. Abu Muslim says, however, that he couldn't reconcile the idea that he was living in a dar kufr (abode of unbelief), and that his taxes were used to fight Islam. Abu Muslim therefore urges fellow Muslims living in the West, namely in Canada, to travel to Syria, while adding that they will earn a high station with Allah for doing so. There is a role for everybody, Abu Muslim notes, while adding that the IS can "easily find accommodation" for those who come to Syria and their families.
On the morning of July 17, the Twitter account for the Islamic State (IS) Salah Al-Din Province in Iraq began posting live reports on an attack by dozens of IS fighters on the "Speicher" airbase in Iraq.
On July 14, 2014, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) released a statement commenting on the Islamic State (IS) caliphate announcement from June 29. In the statement, AQIM reaffirmed its allegiance to Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Al-Zawahiri, who, it is noteworthy, has yet to express his stance on the caliphate's establishment.
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On July 16, 2014, the Islamic State (IS) media company Al-Hayat released a video featuring a contingency of Kazakh IS fighters who are fighting in Syria.
The video shows 16 men, believed to be all Kazakh, who are seen carrying light weapons and standing in front of a truck with an anti-aircraft gun mounted on it. Among the men is Abu Anisah Al-Khazakhi, who delivers a message instigating Kazakh men to join the jihad in Syria, or, as he says, to begin waging jihad in Kazakhstan instead.
On July 10, 2014, Jabhat Al-Nusra (JN) held a large rally in the Aleppo area, in which its leader, Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani, announced that his organization intends to establish an Islamic emirate in parts of Syria. Without detailing the borders of this entity, he said that it would enforce the Islamic shari'a, fight its various enemies in Syria, especially the Assad regime and the Islamic State (IS). He added that, as a project belonging to all Muslims, it would also take advantage of the U.S.’s weakness and set out to liberate Jerusalem.
Photo Documentation: Islamic State Demolishes Shi'ite Tombs, Holy Sites In Nineveh Governorate, Iraq
On July 4, 2014, the official Twitter account of the Islamic State (or IS, formerly the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS) in Nineveh governorate, Iraq provided a detailed report, with photos and explanations, of the demolition of Shi'ite tombs and Shi'ite sacred monuments in cities across Nineveh governorate.
Razing the Tomb of the Daughter, Mosul
An ISIS map shows whole of India, Pakistan and Afghanistan (Khorasan) in its target area
An Indian newspaper reports that four Muslim youth from Mumbai flew as part of a group of Shia pilgrims to Baghdad and broke away to join the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), now called the Islamic State (IS) whose leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi has declared himself the caliph of all Muslims across the world.
Shia Muslims in Delhi protest against Sunni jihadists in Iraq (image courtesy: ibnlive.com)
Amid Indian media reports that some jihadists from Mumbai went to Iraq as part of a delegation of Shia Muslim pilgrims, there are now reports that one hundred thousand Indian Shia Muslims have registered with a Delhi-based organization to go to Iraq to defend holy shrines which are being demolished by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
Anjuman-e-Haideri, a Delhi-based Shia organization, is leading the recruitment. Following are excerpts from an Indian media report indicating that six thousand Shia Muslims from India have applied for Iraqi visas, ostensibly to go for relief work there. However, it is ISIS's attack on Shia shrines in Iraq that is forcing the Shia Muslims from India to take the step.
A group of Pakistani militants express support for ISIS
Following are excerpts from an Indian media report that profiles eight Indian Muslim youths who left a year ago to join the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), now called the Islamic State, which is led by jihadist commander Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi who has declared himself as the caliph of Islam for all Muslims across the world:
"[Indian intelligence] agencies are worried about two youths from Thane (near Mumbai) who are reported to have left for Iraq to fight along ISIS about a year ago. These two boys are part of the 18 Indians learnt to be fighting in Iraq and Syria and are being tracked by intelligence agencies. Sources within the security establishment say most of these 18 hail from south India. Some of those who have been identified belong to [the states of] Maharashtra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. It is not known whether any of them has returned but such exodus from south India has become a cause for worry for the agencies.
Pakistani Media Reports Say Leading Taliban Commander Adnan Rasheed Arrested
According to Pakistani media reports, leading Taliban commander Adnan Rasheed, who was freed by the Taliban militants during a raid on a Pakistani prison in the town of Bannu in 2012, has been captured wounded along with other militants.
Captured Taliban commander Adnan Rasheed
Pakistani media reports indicate that former Pakistan Air Force (PAF) commando-turned leading Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) commander Adnan Rasheed was recently arrested from his home in South Waziristan, a tribal district adjacent to North Waziristan where the Pakistani army is carrying out an anti-Taliban operation. Adnan had been in jail when hundreds of Taliban militants launched a raid in April 2012 and successfully freed him along with others.
Syed Salahuddin
Speaking at a conference in Muzaffarabad, the capital of Pakistani Kashmir, leading jihadi commander Syed Salahuddin has called upon jihadis from different parts of the world to help fight against Indian security forces in Kashmir.
Salahuddin is the head of United Jihad Council (UJC), a coalition of militant groups based across Pakistan. He is also the supreme commander of Hizbul Mujahideen, a militant group fighting against India. Salahuddin was speaking at a July 13 UJC conference to commemorate the deaths of 21 Kashmiris who were killed in 1931 while protesting the Hindu Dogra regime of the time at Srinagar, which is now the capital of India's Jammu & Kashmir state.
Following are excerpts from a report from the Indian media, examining Indian intelligence agencies' search for a key terror suspect who is believed to training what could be first suicide bombers willing to target Indian leaders.
The report titled "Hunt for the Hunter", which interviewed intelligence officials in India and Bangladesh, was published by The Week magazine.
"[Indian Intelligence Is Searching For] Abdul Subhan Qureshi Aka Kasim Aka Zakir Aka Qab Aka Tauqeer; One Of... [India's] Most Wanted Men, The Techie Jihadi, Who Is Spearheading The Indian Mujahideen's Resurgence"
"[Indian intelligence is searching for] Abdul Subhan Qureshi aka Kasim aka Zakir aka Qab aka Tauqeer. One of the National Investigation Agency's most wanted men, the techie jihadi, who is spearheading the Indian Mujahideen's resurgence, has emerged as the largest threat to the country's internal security. He, in fact, is known as the 'Osama bin Laden of India.' Tauqeer and top IM [Indian Mujahideen] leader Yasin Bhatkal, who was arrested in Nepal and handed over to India in September 2013, wanted the IM to be part of the global Salafist jihad. The duo drifted away from the Shahbandri brothers – Riyaz and Iqbal (in Pakistan now) – who wanted the IM to remain a home-grown terror front controlled by Inter-Services Intelligence [ISI of Pakistan] masters.
Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) is connected with a number of militant groups in Pakistan
Recently, a Pakistani jihadist group called Tahreek-e-Khilafat Wa Jihad (TKJ) swore an oath of fealty to Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the militant leader in Iraq who has declared himself caliph of the Islamic State (IS), formerly known as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The TKJ is a Karachi-based jihadist organization.
Images Posted By Baluchi Jihadi Group 'Junood Al-Fida' – Part Of Afghan Taliban
Junood Al-Fida, a group of militants from Baluchistan who are part of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (Afghan Taliban) led by Mullah Mohammad Omar, has posted images of its martyrs and activities on an Urdu-language jihadi internet forum.
On July 12, 2014, the Al-Qaeda-affiliated Global Islamic Media Front (GIMF) released an updated version of its Android mobile app for secure communication.