The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
Since its launch in January 2016, Al-Masra, AQAP's official weekly magazine, has published reports, articles and photos addressing issues related to the U.S ranging from domestic, international and anti-US propaganda, in almost every issue published from Telegram. In February 2016, the paper published a series of articles entailing the planning for the 9/11 attacks narrated by AQAP slain leader Nasser Al-Wuhaishi who had worked as a personal assistant of Osama Bin Laden in Afghanistan. Al-Masra has also published articles discussing police shooting civilians, reported about Black Lives Matters rallies and highlighted the U.S election. The paper encourages lone wolf style attacks in the U.S and gives credit to AQAP occasionally. Last September, the paper stated that Ahmad Rahami, who was arrested on suspicion of planting bombs in New York and New Jersey was influenced by Al-Qaeda.
On October 26, 2016, Al-Masra, the weekly newspaper of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), published an article describing U.S. presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump as "full of flaws," stating that the future of the U.S. will be different from its shining past, and that it is time for U.S. prominence to decline.
The article, written by Ibrahim Abu Al-Futouh, mentioned the recriminations between the two candidates, as well as Trump's implication that he may not concede the results if he loses, and the alleged Russian involvement in leaking Clinton's emails in order to tarnish her credibility and boost her opponent's chances in the election.
According to the article, Trump has succeeded in shaking people's trust in the government, the American people are extremely divided internally, and even if Clinton won, she would be unable to reunite the country. "The U.S.," the article noted, "is no longer a united front in Washington that is ready to face growing challenges."
After describing Clinton and Trump as "full of flaws," the article stated: "Is this an indication of the beginning of the collapse of the U.S.? The answer will be confirmed by the results of the election. Undoubtedly, the future will be different from the past history, during which the star of the U.S. shone, and it is time for it to decline."
Source: "Jihadi Library" Telegram Channel, October 25, 2016.