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On May 8, 2024, a pro-Al-Qaeda Telegram channel called on Salafi-jihadi terrorist groups to kidnap or kill American professional basketball players in Syria as a means of support for Gaza.
The Telegram channel, Bariqat Al-Azeri,[1] shared a post on May 8 titled "Mujahdeen Groups in Syria and the Betrayal of Gaza."[2] The post opened by lamenting that Syrian jihadis have, in the channel's view, "let down and abandoned" Gaza amid the Israel-Hamas war. "How long will we continue to hide behind the sieve?" it asked.
Despite this failure, the channel stated that Syrian jihadis still have "cards of pressure" they can play, which "are capable – with Allah's grace – of reshaping the political and military scene in Gaza, and even of creating problems between the Jews and their sponsor, America."
Among these cards, the channel advised that Syrian jihadis target American professional basketball players – which it referred to as "American Crusaders" – who live and play in Syria.
"With great regret, over the past few years, the American Crusaders have dared to come to our land on commercial contracts with the so-called Syrian Basketball League," the post read, continuing, "These infidels live in our occupied land and move about comfortably without notable security. Their residences are known and the times of their departure and return are published on the internet in accordance with the schedule of games, so they can be monitored with ease."
In particular, the channel identified four American professional basketball players living in Syria as prospective targets:
The first was A.J. John, who, the channel noted, plays for the Al-Ittihad Ahli Club and lives in the Al-Furqan neighborhood of Aleppo near the Al-Rawda Mosque in an "ordinary house without any notable security," according to information the channel said it obtained three months ago. "This infidel should be a primary target because of his international fame more than the others and because he played for an Israeli club just over two years ago from today," it stated.
Secondly, the channel identified Cameron Coleman, who plays for the Al-Wahda Sports Club in Damascus, Syria.
Thirdly, it identified Jomaru Brown, who also plays for the Al-Wahda Sports Club in Damascus.
Finally, the channel named Douglas Herring Jr., who is an American-born naturalized Syrian professional basketball player.
The channel stated: "Kidnapping one of these players, bringing him to the north [of Syria], broadcasting media propaganda appropriate for the event, and directing messages to the American people is enough to overturn the table, scatter the papers, and incite disputes between the Jews and the Americans, especially because these players are famous, even if just a little bit so."
It likened the proposed operation to Hamas' taking of hostages on October 7, noting: "We saw how the Americans went crazy during the first days of the [Israel-Hamas] war to get their hostages out. Such operations will be a strong card in negotiations between the Jews and Hamas because of the increased pressure on the Jews by America."
The channel also chastised naysayers who would claim that the operation is impossible, given that "the leadership of the controlling factions" in Syria would not allow it to take place. "The work is possible, and the capabilities are available," it said, "By Allah, our situation is no more difficult than the situation of the heroes who snuffed out the Israeli businessman in Alexandria" – a reference to the May 7 assassination of an Israeli businessman in Alexandria, Egypt, by unknown gunmen.
In particular, the channel invited several Salafi-jihadi groups to carry out the operation, including Hurras Al-Din, Ansar Al-Islam, Ansar Al-Tawhid, and "enthusiasts" in Hay'at Tahrir Al-Sham.
In conclusion, the post noted: "It is a shame for us to call for peaceful solutions and demonstrations when we have arrows in our quivers and armies of lions ready to support the religion of Allah."
[1] The channel's name indicates the author is likely of Azeri ethnicity.
[2] Telegram, May 8, 2024.
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