The following report is a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
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On October 19, 2014, Al-Qaeda's media company Al-Sahab launched a new English-language magazine titled Resurgence, which is the mouthpiece of the newly formed Al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS). The cover story of the magazine, "Besiege Them!" was penned by U.S.-born Al-Qaeda spokesman Adam Gadahn, focuses on various economic tactics to combat the West.
Adam Gadahn was indicted for treason and providing material support to terrorists on October 11, 2006; he was the first American indicted for the crime in half a century.[i] He has also written a number of articles for Al-Qaeda's English-language magazine Inspire.
Gadahn starts off his article by recounting the history of Israel, dismissing Jewish claims to the land and claiming it for Palestinians and for Islam in general. He then goes on to echo the Islamic State (ISIS) in stating that the Sykes-Picot accord must be abolished, along with the UN charter and other such treaties, and added that unless Israel is "erased from the map," Muslims in general, and specifically in Gaza, will continue to die and will never be able to live in peace, and Gaza will remain "an American-sponsored and –sanctioned modern day concentration camp."
Gadahn then explains that there is a need to "fight fire with fire" and, underlining tactics reminiscent of ISIS and also of the anti-Israel BDS movement, calls for "our own blockade and embargo on the Jews and Crusaders... striking... international trade and finance" and stopping "at all costs" the "exploitation of the weak and impoverished and the destruction of local economies" by "Wal-Mart, MacDonald's [sic], Proctor and Gamble, Microsoft, Nestle, and Unilever [which are] symbols of the rampant Crusader globalization." He attacks the World Bank and IMF and urges a return to the gold standard or, alternately, the use of a barter system, to rid the Muslim world of dependence on the global financial market. At the same time, he says, economic pressure must be brought to bear upon the West, thus ultimately leading to its collapse.
Gadahn goes on to quote from "an article for The Guardian entitled 'Backstage, it's business as usual,'" by Soumaya Ghannoushi, and ends with a call to all Muslims to join the jihad for the establishment of the caliphate in any way they can. Besides armed struggle, he says, jihad "includes all legitimate ways and means which support, strengthen and advance the military effort and lead to our success in this battle for the future of the Muslim Ummah." He concludes, "Be patient and resolute, and instill patience and resolve in your brothers, because this war is still in its infancy."
It should be mentioned that the article features an image announcing an upcoming exclusive interview with Gadahn dealing with "the story of his reversion to Islam and his journey to jihad" that will be "coming soon," apparently in a future issue.
Following is the text of the article in the original English:
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"The Only Just Answer To The Palestinian 'Question' Is The Removal Of 'Israel' In Its Entirety"; "How Can The Jews... Justifiably Claim To Have Any Right To The Land Of The Prophets...?"
"For more than two decades, Muslims have been told that the just solution to the problem of the Jewish occupation of Palestine is in the Western-sponsored creation of an emaciated, defenseless and nominally independent state for Arabs on a mere fraction of the land of Palestine, with the lion's share remaining in the hands of the Jews for them to rule and corrupt as they please. The so-called 'two-state solution' – which in practical terms is a 'one and one-half state solution' (or perhaps a 'one and one-third state solution'!) – is not only unacceptable to the majority of Palestinians, it is also against the laws and principles of Islam, and ignores the fact that Palestine was an Islamic land and will always be an Islamic land; and this is why the only way forward and the only just answer to the Palestinian 'question' is the removal of 'Israel' in its entirety and the recovery of all of Muslim Palestine by Muslims and for Muslims. Palestine is for Muslims, because Palestine is the Land of the Prophets, and Muslims are the true heirs to the Prophets and not the Jews.
"If the Torah, Evangel and Koran clearly state that Allah's covenant doesn't extend to the wrongdoers, even if they be offspring of Prophets, how then could there possibly be any validity in the Jews' claims that Palestine is their birthright? Not only did the Children of Israel – from whom emerged the Jews – fail to discharge the responsibility they were given to worship Allah alone, do good deeds for His sake, enjoin good and forbid evil and spread His religion, they also disbelieved in some of the Prophets and Messengers sent to reform and guide them, to the extent of killing some of them and making gods out of others. How then can the Jews – the killers of the Prophets and perverters of their Messages – justifiably claim to have any right to the land of the Prophets, except as peaceful, law-abiding subjects of the Islamic state?
"According to a hadith in Saheeh Muslim, Al-Masjid al-Aqsa [the Al-Aqsa Mosque] in al-Quds [Jerusalem] was built 40 years after the building of the first masjid on earth, al-Masjid al-Haraam in Mecca. Although there is a difference of opinion among historians about which Prophet first built them and when, there is no dispute about the fact that they were both built and renovated by Prophets. The foundations of Al-Masjid al-Haraam were raised by the Prophet Abraham and his son Prophet Ishmael (peace be upon them) the latter of whom the Jews (and Christians) insult and belittle on the basis of the additions and subtractions their monks, rabbis and scribes have made in their holy books and falsely attributed to Allah. Meanwhile, al-Masjid al-Aqsa was renovated and expanded by the Noble Prophet Solomon (peace be upon him), whom the Jews (and Christians) not only accuse of sorcery and idol worship, and his father of adultery and other abominations, they even deny that he and his father were Prophets in the first place, referring to them derisively as 'King' Solomon and 'King' David. So how can such enemies of the Prophets possibly have any right to the Land of those same Prophets?
"In the period following the age of the Hebrew Prophets and prior to the coming of Christ, peace be upon him, and in the centuries which followed, Palestine was ruled for the most part by polytheists and tyrants, with a few notable exceptions, until it was liberated in 637 by the Muslims under the leadership of our Chief Omar bin al-Khattab, the second Khalifah [caliph] – or successor – to our Prophet Muhammad, peace and prayers of Allah be upon him. Omar (may Allah be pleased with him) undertook the cleaning and restoration of al-Masjid al-Aqsa, which the Christians – there were no Jews in al-Quds at the time – had been using as a garbage dump. Palestine and al-Aqsa flourished in Muslim hands until al-Quds was occupied and sacked and its inhabitants – including the Jews, for under Muslim rule there were Jews in Palestine – were murdered by Bible-believing, Pope-following – rather, Pope-worshipping – fundamentalist Christians in 1099 during the First Crusade.
"88 years later, in 1187, the great Muslim commander Salahuddin al-Ayyubi recovered al-Quds for Islam. He cleaned and renovated al-Masjid al-Aqsa, which the Crusaders had been using as a stable for their horses. It would not be until 1916 that Palestine was again lost to the Jews and Crusaders, this time by way of the Balfour declaration and the Sykes-Picot agreement. Some readers may be curious about why I have provided this summary of the history of Palestine and al-Aqsa. My reply is that you would be surprised at the number of Muslims out there who are unaware of the Islamic history of Palestine and thus may be taken in by Zionist propaganda in this regard."
"Until And Unless 'Israel' Is Erased From The Map, Gaza Will Remain An American-Sponsored-And Sanctioned Modern Day Concentration Camp And Be Subjected To Indiscriminate Bombardment By The Jews On The Flimsiest Of Pretexts"
"The Jewish occupation of Palestine and the methodical and genocidal persecution of the Palestinians – the most recent manifestation of which is the ongoing Israeli aggression against Gaza which has so far taken the lives of more than 2,000 Muslims and wounded more than 8,000 – is the inevitable outcome of the Sykes-Picot accord, which was drawn up secretly by Britain, France and Russia in 1916 and revealed to the world in 1917. This sinister accord divided the once mighty, once-united Muslim nation into dozens of feeble statelets ruled by proxies and agents of the West. The ability of the Jews to perpetuate their occupation of Palestine and continue their relentless subjugation and humiliation of its populace with impunity and without fear of reprisal or accounting for their crimes is the direct result of the ratification by these statelets of the founding charter of the United Nations, which obligates member states to abide by the resolutions of the American-led, Israeli-influenced Security Council and requires member states to defend and preserve the sovereignty and territorial integrity of other member states, especially 'Israel.' It is only through the abolishment of Sykes-Picot, the United Nations charter and all similar accords that Palestine and other occupied Muslim lands from Spain to East Turkistan can be recovered and their Muslim populations be able to live in security, honor and dignity in the shade of the Islamic Caliphate.
"Until and unless 'Israel' is erased from the map, Gaza will remain an American-sponsored-and sanctioned modern day concentration camp and be subjected to indiscriminate bombardment by the Jews on the flimsiest of pretexts. Until and unless 'Israel' is erased from the map, the children of Palestine will grow up in an environment of constant fear, their impressionable minds permanently scarred by the horror of Israeli bombing raids and the consequent death and destruction.
"Until and unless 'Israel" is erased from the map, the children of Palestine will continue to suffer poverty and deprivation of the worst sort, a deprivation in which they aren't only deprived of their homes and health, but are also deprived of their lives and loved ones.
"Until and unless 'Israel' is erased from the map, not only will Palestinian children continue to see their parents and siblings gunned down in front of their eyes, but parents too will be unable to prevent their children from being killed in their arms.
"Until and unless 'Israel' is erased from the map, Palestinian mothers and fathers in Gaza will continue to have to watch their children die slow and miserable deaths, because they are unable to procure proper medical treatment in Gaza's understaffed and undersupplied hospitals; and that's assuming these hospitals are spared by Israeli airstrikes in the first place, and aren't targeted like the main Ash-Shifa medical complex was on the first day of Eid al-Fitr (a playground was also targeted, resulting in the killing at least 8 children).
"Until and unless practical steps are taken to erase 'Israel' from the map, unspeakable crimes like these will continue to be perpetrated in the shadow of an international and regional stance which oscillates between open collusion and disgraceful silence; and here I quote from the message of Amir ul Mominin [Emir of the believers] Mullah Muhammad Omar Mujahid – may Allah preserve him – on the occasion of Eid-al-Fitr 1435, in which he said, 'We condemn and denounce the savage aggression of the Israeli usurper entity against the oppressed Palestinians which has killed, wounded and displaced hundreds and thousands in the blessed month of Ramadan. We call upon the world – and the Islamic world in particular – not to keep silent towards these crimes, because keeping silent towards them is unjust and means that everyone loses; and urgent and practical steps must be taken to prevent this oppression and aggression lest the security of the region and world worsen.'
"We are today facing a barbaric enemy coalition whose actions are in diametric contradiction to the language of humanitarianism, coexistence and rational dialogue which it hypocritically uses and demands the rest of the world to abide by, even as it flouts every principle of humanitarianism and coexistence imaginable."
"It Is Time For Us To Fight Fire With Fire, And Impose Our Own Blockade And Embargo On The Jews And Crusaders"; "Any Of Their Ships Are Legitimate Targets"
"The brutal and heartless bombing of civilian homes, schools, shelters, hospitals and children's playgrounds in Gaza and the unrelenting international blockade and embargo imposed on the Strip by the Jews and Crusaders and their allies are acts of oppression being carried out in defense of oppression and in defense of the Jews' false claim to Palestine, and that's why no Muslim can condone them. However, blockades and embargoes are legitimate and effective military tactics when used proportionally and in defense of the truth and its people. Muslim armies have successfully made use of such tactics on numerous occasions throughout history, from the blockade the Prophet (peace and prayers of Allah be upon him) imposed on the Jews of Banu Quraydah, to the Ottoman siege of Constantinople, right down to the present day and the Iraqi Mujahideen's besieging of the Crusaders and their proxies in Baghdad in general and in the Green Zone in particular, a siege which played a major role in the weakening and eventual defeat of the coalition. Repeated aggression by Israel against Palestinian towns and villages and the oppressive embargo imposed on the defenseless population of Gaza will not come to an end by way of the inaction that has regrettably plagued the Muslim world. This is why it is time for us to fight fire with fire, and impose our own blockade and embargo on the Jews and Crusaders, by hitting them where it hurts and striking the heart and lifeblood of their economy, represented by international trade and finance.
"The Mujahideen must seek to paralyze international trade for the enemy states, or at the very least, increase its costs, by targeting their cargo ships and merchant marines in Islamic waters, ports, canals and straits, on the high seas, and in their own territorial waters, and by disrupting their shipping routes wherever and however possible. Any of their ships are legitimate targets, but exports are the key to any economy, including the economies of the West. The Mujahideen must seek to deprive the enemies of the precious oil and mineral resources they are stealing from us and using to fuel their war machine, by sabotaging Crusader-run oil wells and mines in Islamic lands and destroying pipelines before the oil reaches the coast and falls into enemy hands, and by sinking their supertankers and sabotaging their oil rigs in enemy waters, and in the process, ruining their lucrative fishing industries like they have ruined ours in Gaza, Somalia, and elsewhere.
"Meanwhile, Muslims must continue to boycott American, Crusader and Jewish businesses and products, from cars and computers to candies and clothing, and we must produce, purchase and support local alternatives whenever possible. Major Western companies and multinational corporations like Wal-Mart, MacDonald's, Proctor and Gamble, Microsoft, Nestle and Unilever are symbols of the rampant Crusader globalization which is characterized by the exploitation of the weak and impoverished, and the destruction of local economies. It is our duty as Muslims and as Mujahideen to stop this at all costs.
"Muslims must avoid as much as possible banks and financial markets, because not only are they based on the so-called 'interest,' which is nothing but usury, whose users, abusers and beneficiaries Allah has threatened with war (see Koran 2:275-281). Banks are also an integral part of the Western-run global economic system which has become a tool for enslaving the Muslims and other oppressed people of the world.
"Instead, Muslims must start to make efforts to reinstate gold, silver and other basic commodities as the standards and mediums of exchange, and begin experimenting with barter systems as initial steps on the way to attaching the industrial production base to a local Islamic economy and ridding ourselves of the enemy's national and global economies. Reinstating gold as a medium of exchange is also necessary for ridding ourselves of the usurious fractional reserve banking system that creates money from nothing, ties our markets and industries to the economies of the West, puts us at the mercy of the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and World Trade Organization, and makes us vulnerable to international sanctions, economic embargoes, and countless other forms of interference in our society, culture, government and religion."
"Yes, It's Perfectly Reasonable To Encourage The Muslims To Begin To Prepare Themselves Financially And Economically For The Victory Of Islam"
"Some might ask, 'Is it reasonable to ask Muslims to try to free themselves from the clutches of the international financial system before the defeat of Kufr Internationale and establishment of the greater Islamic state?' My reply is: Yes, it's perfectly reasonable to encourage the Muslims to begin to prepare themselves financially and economically for the victory of Islam, the same way we encourage them to prepare, organize and educate themselves religiously, militarily and politically in order to pave the way for the establishment of the Islamic state! Today more than ever before, Muslims have begun to understand that they will never be able to achieve the economic prosperity and political independence they aspire to without first freeing their countries from the usurious global financial system and the disproportionately large influence of international donors.
"Soumaya Ghannoushi, in an article for The Guardian entitled 'Backstage, it's business as usual', published shortly after the beginning of the popular uprisings in the Arab world three years ago, noted the growing awareness of this fact in the region while warning about Western efforts to undermine and sabotage the fledgling revolutions in the Arab world using some of the systems and institutions I alluded to above. I quote here some of the relevant passages from her article (emphases are mine): 'The West is not only deploying hard military power in its attempt to control the process of change. It is directing its economic arm to that end too, through the World Bank and the IMF. Recently, the president of the World Bank, Robert Zoellick,[ii] addressed a group of Arab activists, praising change in the region as a 'striking moment engendering its own momentum.' Hearing him speak of the problems facing 'people in north Africa and the Middle East,' one could have mistaken him for an innocent, independent analyst with no relation whatsoever to the economic crises with which these regions are struggling.
"'This is part of a campaign to conceal a fundamental fact about what is happening: that people are not only rebelling against an internationally backed political authoritarianism, but against the economic model imposed by the IMF, World Bank and, in the case of Tunisia and Egypt, the EU's structural reform programs.
"'In Tunisia, the first Arab country to sign the Euro-Mediterranean Association Agreement in 1995,more than 67 per cent of publicly-owned firms have been privatized, while in Egypt the number stands at 164 out of 314. This went with the drowning of these countries' economies in debt, thus holding them hostage to handouts from the US and the EU.'
"And that's just the first of a series of vicious circles designed to keep the Muslim world under the control of the West! To understand what the privatization of publicly-owned firms actually means and find out just how oppressive this and other neocolonialist policies are, I highly recommend Confessions of an Economic Hit Man and The Secret History of the American Empire by John Perkins.
"It remains to be said, however, that despite the growing wave of popular opposition to which Ghannoushi alluded, the so-called revolutionary government in Tunisia – under the leadership of the quasi-Islamic Renaissance Party led by Summayya's father Rached and husband Rafik Abdessalam – as well as the new/old orders in Egypt, Libya and Yemen, did little more than continue the old regimes' practice of borrowing from the World Bank and the IMF and accepting yet more strings-attached donations from America, the EU and other donor nations (not to mention their continuation of the old regimes' 'counter-terrorism' policies, but that's a topic for another day), thereby dashing the hopes of populaces eager for real change and paving the way for the reemergence of the very same ruling elites and vested interests which the uprisings set out to topple.
"Nevertheless, there is a consensus in Western halls of power that the global economic system is currently at its most fragile and vulnerable, particularly in light of the upheavals in the Arab and Muslim world and the massive and growing sovereign debt and budget crises in Europe and America which are leading to massive political and social upheaval even in the West. This is why Western leaders are expressing growing concern about the viability of the system and its negative impact on the future of Western civilization, with some of them even going so far as to declare the system fundamentally flawed and propose a return to a pre-Bretton Woods model. Of course, since such an overhaul would mean giving up several irreplaceable tools of Western global hegemony, America and her Crusader allies aren't likely to agree to it, which means the continuation of the war of attrition, which will – Allah willing – eventually culminate in the collapse of their economic system, and along with it, their global empire.
"Like all weapons, the economic weapon is a double-edged sword, and the West is just as at risk from this type of warfare as the Muslim world is. This period of historic uncertainty and instability demands of every Muslim that he or she joins the fight and do his or her part to make life a little more difficult for the Zionists and Crusaders and contribute to their ultimate defeat."
"Play Your Part In The Jihad Today, Whether Your Part Be Military, Financial, Economic, Educational, Motivational, Or Otherwise"
"Today, thanks to Allah and then to the sacrifices and resolve of the Mujahideen and their visionary leaders like Amir ul Mominin Mulla Muhammad Omar Mujahid (may Allah preserve him), the martyr Sheikh Osama bin Laden (may Allah have mercy on him), and our Mujahid Ameer Sheikh Ayman al-Zawahiri (may Allah preserve him), the head of International Unbelief, America, is at an unprecedented stage of weakness which is threatening the very foundations of its evil empire.
"By the grace of Allah, Muslims have defeated America and her coalition of the wicked in at least two crucial battles. But we should be under no illusions that the Crusader pull-out from Iraq and the expected pull-out from Afghanistan later this year means the end of the greater global war.
"With the Islamic Ummah plagued by numerous other occupations and embargoes and Palestine still at the mercy of the merciless Jews and in their clutches, with followers of the Prophet Muhammad - peace and prayers of Allah be upon him – under attack from Mali, Nigeria and the Central African Republic in the West to Syria, Iraq, Burma and Thailand in the East, and with the Muslims in the grip of neocolonialism, dictatorships, poverty, ignorance, irreligiousness and blind imitation and following of the disbelievers, the path ahead of us is by no means an easy one. But if each one of us makes a sincere effort to participate in the struggle against the enemies of Islam and oppressors of Muslims, while at the same time making a sincere effort to apply his religion and educate and reform himself and those around him, Allah shall – if He so wills – bless our efforts and give us victory over the disbelievers and over the evil in ourselves, and shall unite us and establish for us the Islamic Caliphate towards which we are working.
"Dear Muslim: The path to victory over our enemies and the establishment of our Caliphate isn't confined to armed action alone, but includes all legitimate ways and means which support, strengthen and advance the military effort and lead to our success in this battle for the future of the Muslim Ummah. So don't delay, and play your part in the Jihad today, whether your part be military, financial, economic, educational, motivational or otherwise. Be patient and resolute, and instill patience and resolve in your brothers, because this war is still in its infancy.
"Wal-Hamdu-Lillahi Rabb al-'Aalameen."
[i] Washingtonpost.com, October 12, 2006.
[ii] World Bank president since July 2012 has been Dr. Jim Yong Kim. Gadahn is referring here to statements by Zoellick from March 2011. Worldbank.org/en/news/speech/2011/03/21/world-bank-group-president-robert-b-zoellick-opening-remarks-at-arab-voices-and-views-conference.
