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 [email protected] . Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.
EXCLUSIVE: Jihadi Fighters, Supporters Tweet Reactions To Refugee Crisis Hitting Europe
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
Jihadi fighters and supporters have taken to Twitter to express their views regarding the influx of Syrian refugees to Europe. The photo of the drowned, lifeless body of three-year-old Syrian Kurdish refugee Aylan Kurdi has gone viral, triggering reactions online. This report covers a range of responses: Some criticize Europe, others the regime of Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad; some blame airstrikes by the coalition, saying that they force the Syrians to flee; and others criticize the Syrians for leaving their land for the lands of the infidels. Still others called the photo of the drowned boy "PKK propaganda" or hypothesized that Muslims who flee will end up being killed by the Westerners.
Female ISIS member Umm Faaris tweeted: "I wonder when the Syrians will realise that fleeing to kuffar [infidels] will never get them any benefit. They're only going to end up humiliated."
EXCLUSIVE: American Al-Shabaab Member Reportedly Killed In Somalia
On September 6, 3015, news of the death of Muhammad Al-Amriki, an American member of Al-Shabaab in Somalia, was circulated by a number of Twitter accounts. According to Student of Zarqawi, a Twitter account reporting exclusively on jihadi activity in Somalia, Al-Amriki was killed in Mogadishu. No further details were published.
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On August 30, 2015, the Shumoukh Al-Islam jihadi forum published a letter by one Anas Al-Ansari, identified as a "forum supervisor," in which he stated that the Islamic State (ISIS) was now in a new phase of its development. After ISIS had established a state in Syria and Iraq, proven its strength in the battlefield, expanded geographically, and terrorized its enemies, he said, it had now reached the stage in which it must establish its institutions, stabilize, and institute its rule. At the same time, Al-Ansari stressed that ISIS had not abandoned the sword, and that along with establishing its rule, it would continue to fight on the battlefield.
EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Releases Video Showing Destruction Of Mar Elian Christian Monastery In Homs
On September 8, 2015, the media office of the Islamic State (ISIS) Damascus province released a video showing the destruction of the Mar Elian monastery in the town of Al-Qaryatayn in Homs, Syria, which took place last month. In the video, which was posted on Shumoukh Al-Islam, an ISIS-affiliated online forum, the group described the Mar Elian monastery as a place of worship of gods other than Allah.
On September 10, 2015, a female Koran teacher, who appears to be based in the U.K., tweeted photos of cards made by her girls' class for jihadi fighters in Syria. The cards are addressed to fighters in Jabhat-Al Nusra, The Islamic Front, Ahrar-Al Sham, and Jaysh-Al Fath. The elementary-school-age girls seem well-versed in the Syrian conflict - for example, they address the leaders of Jahbat Al-Nusra by name. The teacher's text on each image reads: "lil kids from my quaran halaqah put their heads together to 'post' letters to the muhajideen." She also tweeted a request for replies to "encourage" the little girls, tagging others on Twitter. It is probable that this class is conducted in a madrassa. It is likely that the teacher is based in the UK; she used the term "post" as opposed to mail, and she appears to be acquainted with Majid Freeman who is mostly known domestically in the U.K.. She mentioned in a tweet from July 6 that her family had moved from Afghanistan before she was born. She also mentions family members who are living in the UK.
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
Today, September 9, 2015, Al-Malahem Media, the media branch of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), released via Twitter Issue 14 of its English-language magazine Inspire. The 87-page publication, titled "Assassination Operations," features in its cover image a hooded gunman facing photos of some of the targets listed in its feature story.
While on the cover the issue is dated Summer 2015, the "Contents" page is dated September 2015. As in previous issues, this page also includes a note to readers: "We have temporarily suspended our email addresses for readers' security reasons."
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On September 9, 2015, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) released Issue 14 of its English-language magazine Inspire. The issue, titled "Assassination Operations," includes a military analysis of the January 2015 Charlie Hebdo attack and instructions for making a grenade, and also chronicles the history of blacks in America. An "Assassinations Field Tactics" section lists 10 well-known Americans as targets; they are divided into "A: Economic Personalities" and "B: Wealthy Entrepreneurs and Company Owners." Under "A" are "Ben Shalom Bernanek," i.e. Ben Bernanke; Robert James Shiller; Charlie and David Koch; Sam Walton; and Sheldon Adelson; under "B" are Bill Gates, Warren Buffet, "Lawrence Joseph," i.e. Larry Ellison; and Michael Bloomberg. Previous issues of Inspire have also suggested that Ben Bernanke and Bill Gates be targeted.
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The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
In an article titled "The Blacks in America," in Issue 14 of the English-language Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) magazine Inspire, Abu Abdiliah Al-Moravid discusses recent incidents that have inflamed race relations in the U.S., including the police killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri and of Freddie Gray in Baltimore, Maryland, as well as the mass shooting attack on an African-American church in Charleston, South Carolina by white gunman Dylann Roof.
Al-Moravid traces the historical roots of the oppression of blacks in America, drawing parallels between their treatment by U.S. authorities and U.S. treatment of Muslims in the Middle East. He expresses sorrow that African-Americans participate in the oppression of Muslims, and calls on them to rise up against the crimes of their own government.
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
In an article titled "Suleiman Al-Halaby - 18th Century Lone Mujahid Assassin," appearing in issue 14 of the English-language Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) magazine Inspire, writer Khalid Al-San'ani relays the story of Halaby, an 18th-century Syrian student in Cairo who assassinated French General Jean Baptiste Kl├®ber, head of the French Occupation Force in Egypt. The graphic attached to the article, which refers to Al-Halaby as the "first lone mujahid to attack the French," includes some background detail on the killing: "June 14, 1800; type - assassination; target - the French army General Jean Baptiste; weapon - stiletto (stabbing); pursued target for 31 days and finally killing the general." A picture of a stiletto is also included with the text: "Assassin's choice of weapon deadly and easily concealable."
The following is the full text of the article:
"The battle of Hearts & Minds will never cease to exist: Ever since the days of Prophet Muhammad ... the disbelievers have tirelessly embarked on an effort to gain support; either by propagating their ideals or by conspiring against Islam. This is the same case with [the] current disbelievers; the Obamas, Hollandes, [and] Charlie Hebdos. They will always continue to exist, serving as a scale for Muslims. A scale that weighs their love for the sake of religion and a scale that exposes the hypocrites and their betrayal for the very core of Islamic values. Will a Muslim stand up against the disbelievers or will he just ignore [them] and try to mold his own taste of Islam in order to please the disbelievers? And how will a Muslim comprehend the verse: 'the Jews and Christians will never be pleased with you until you follow their millah' and the verse 'You will not find any people who believe in Allah and the Last Day loving those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, even though they be their fathers, their sons, their brothers or their relatives' [Koran 58:22]."
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
Issue 11 of the Islamic State (ISIS) English-language magazine Dabiq features an article on racism in America, titled "Wala and Bara' Versus American Racism." The issue of race surfaces frequently in ISIS publications and communications by its fighters and supporters, particularly among its Western recruits, who are influenced by popular youth culture and relevant current affairs. ISIS has also exploited the issue of race in numerous ways to attract Western fighters (for more on this, see MEMRI JTTM report The Issue Of Race In The Discourse Of The Islamic State (ISIS) And Its Supporters).
The Dabiq article pointed out that race-related issues have recently dominated headlines in the U.S., and that the Muslim minority in the country has, unlike the "crusader" mainstream media, paid attention to these problems. While lauding the fact that Muslims are not ignoring such a serious issue, the article condemns how the Muslim community is addressing it: It sees championing coexistence and promoting Islam as a religion of peace as two major problems, and states that doing so serves an infidel agenda.
Article In Issue 11 Of 'Dabiq' Warns Refugees Of Dangers Of Emigrating To The West
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
An article in Issue 11 of the Islamic State (ISIS) English-language magazine Dabiq, titled "The Danger of Abandoning Darul-Islam [land of Islam]," warns potential refugees of the dangerous sins that they would be committing if they emigrated to the West, as opposed to emigrating to the Islamic State. The article is very recent, it features the now-iconic image of the body of three-year old Syrian Kurdish refugee Aylan Kurdi washed up on a Turkish beach.
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
Issue 11 of Dabiq, ISIS's English-language magazine released on September 9, 2015, contains two pages dedicated to advertising two prisoners that are for sale. Those who are interested are told to contact a "Telegram" number provided. Telegram is an encrypted app that is popular with ISIS fighters and supporters.
The first prisoner listed is a Norwegian named Ole Johan Grimsgaard-Oftadd. It lists his home address, his date of birth, his education, and his place of birth in Porsgrunn, Norway. The ad reads, "To whom it may concern of the crusaders, pagans, and their allies, as well as what are referred to as human 'rights' organizations: This Norwegian prisoner was abandoned by his government, which did not do its utmost to purchase his freedom. Whoever would like to pay for the ransom for his release and transfer can contact the following Telegram number." The ad mentions at the end that this is a limited-time offer.
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
In an article titled "A Jihad Without Fighting," female writer Umm Sumayyah Al-Muhajirah offered religious guidance to the wives of the mujahideen to enable them to deal with their husbands' general unavailability, imprisonment, or death, and advice on raising their children to be the future generation of jihad.
The writer, an official in the Islamic State (ISIS) who is in charge of issues related to women, criticized jihadi wives who complain when their husbands are sent to the battlefield, writing: "O my sister, who deluded you and told you that the life of Jihad is one of comfort and ease?" She also underlined the story of the prophet Ayyub, whose wife stood by him when he was very sick and made sacrifices until he recovered.
The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
Issue 11 of ISIS's English-language magazine Dabiq includes a two-page article titled "The 'Mahdi' of the Rafidha - The Dajjal", whose main thrust is that the Mahdi, the Shi'ite messiah, is actually the Dajjal, namely the Devil. The article claims further that the Jews also await this evil messiah, and therefore the
On September 4, 2015 the Al-Ansar Brigade, an Algerian jihadi group, pledged allegiance to the Islamic State (ISIS) and criticized Al-Qaeda and its affiliates for their position on the Caliphate in an audio statement posted on leading jihadi forum Shumoukh Al-Islam. In the statement, the group listed several reasons for their decision to join ISIS and urged Muslims everywhere to pledge allegiance to the Caliph Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi and support him.
In a communique issued on September 5, 2015, Abu Suhaib Osama, Al-Qaida Maghreb's (AQIM) commander in the "central region" (i.e., Algeria), denied that the Al-Ansar Brigade, which he commands, has joined ISIS.
Report: UAE Arrests 11 Indians Trying To Join ISIS, Deports Two Others
According to an Urdu-language daily, the United Arab Emirates has arrested 11 Indian nationals for trying to join the Islamic State (ISIS). The UAE officials also detained and deported two youths from India's southern Kerala state for trying to join ISIS.
Taliban commander Mullah Mansour Dadullah, who is opposing the selection of Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansoor as the Taliban's Supreme Leader, has said that the Pakistani military's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) had demanded that he begin a campaign of assassinating Afghan leaders, according to an Afghan website.
Following are excerpts from a biography of Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansoor released by the official website of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (the Taliban shadow government):
"[Former Taliban Leader Mullah Omar] Trained And Graduated Many High-Caliber Personalities During His Lifetime And Under His Leadership, Each One Perfectly Capable Of Guiding The Muslim Masses"
"The prominent figureheads of jihad generally possess distinct leadership qualities. They are usually either naturally gifted with these capabilities or they master them through learning and studying other jihadi leaders."
In a recent article, the Urdu-language Pakistani weekly Haftroza Al-Qalam urged people to join jihad. The weekly, which is published by the leading Pakistani jihadi organization Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM), says that its messengers of jihad are going from mosque to mosque and street to street to invite people to jihad.
The JeM, which publishes the magazine under its charity arm, Al-Rehmat Trust, is headed by Maulana Masood Azhar. He is one of the three militants released by India in exchange for the passengers of an Indian plane hijacked from Kathmandu to Kandahar via India in 1999.
Terror Financing: Bangladeshi Businessman Accused Of Funding Terror Group
A leading Bangladeshi businessman has been accused of depositing 1,600,000 Bangladesh Taka (approximately $20,500) into the bank account of a terror mastermind, according to a Bangladeshi website.
Report: Bangladesh Unearths Terror Plot To Attack Over 100 Naval Bases
According to a Bangladeshi newspaper, a terror plot to blow up over 100 Navy and Coast Guard bases and oil refineries in the southeastern port city of Chittagong has been foiled.
