Islamist Websites Monitor No. 86

ISI Threatens to Execute 20 Iraqi Officers Within 48 Hours Unless Its Demands Are Met

In an April 14, 2007 communiqué, the Islamic State in Iraq (ISI) announced that it had kidnapped 20 officers affiliated with the Iraqi Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defense, and that they would be executed within 48 hours unless the following demands are met: the Iraqi government must release all Sunni women prisoners from its jails, and must hand over to the ISI the officers who were involved in the rape of Sabrin Al-Janabi (in February, 2007), as well as the officers responsible for the killing and expelling of the Sunni inhabitants of Tal'afar (a town in north west Iraq) and those who participated in the rape of Sunni women in that town.

Below is an image of the kidnapped officers that accompanied the communiqué:

70 Somali Clerics Urge the Somalis to Resist the Occupation

On April 15, 2007, Islamist websites issued a communiqué signed by 70 Somali clerics which calls on the Somalis to deliver their land from the Ethiopian occupation, which is "supported by the U.S." as "part of the Crusader war waged by America against the Islamic nation under the pretext of fighting terrorism." The communiqué also warns those who collaborate with the Ethiopians and with the infidels that, unless they repent, they will be targeted along with the infidels.

The following are excerpts:

"We call on our noble people to resist the occupation with all their might, until the occupiers are defeated and [Somalia] is free. No Somali must aid the infidels against the Muslims... Those who assist the enemy will be legitimate targets for the resistance...

"[The enemy] is preparing a new sweeping attack aimed at annihilating the inhabitants of the capital Mogadishu and their property, and we therefore urge all Somalis to hurry and thwart this attack by any means at their disposal. We also call on the world to stop this disaster...

"We warn [the Somalis] not to fall into the enemies' trap by turning the resistance into a civil war among the Somali tribes... We call upon all the Somali tribes and factions to make a serious [attempt] to reconcile [their differences] and resolve their problems by themselves, without foreign intervention."

Al-Qaeda in Islamic Maghreb Takes Responsibility for Attacks on Military Compound, Police Patrol

On April 14, 2007, Islamist websites posted a communiqué by Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, operating in Algeria, in which it claimed responsibility for two operations carried out on April 13: an attack on a military compound in the city of Al-Qadara and an attack on a police patrol on the Boumerdes-Al-Karama road.

The following are excerpts:

"On Friday, the 26^th day of [the Islamic month of] Rabi' Al-Awal, at 22:00ACAC, the jihad fighters carried out a successful attack on the apostates' compound in the town of Al-Qadara (in Boumerdes [province]), which was occupied at the time by over 40 apostates belonging to the army and police force... The mujahideenfirst attacked [the compound] with RPG [fire], PK machine guns, submachine guns and bombs, and the battle lasted for over two hours... [Then], they stormed the compound and captured it after killing and wounding an unknown number of apostates, and the rest fled... One of our brothers [the jihad fighters] was killed in the battle and we beseech Allah to accept him as a martyr.

"At 17:00 [on the same day], the jihad fighters successfully ambushed a police patrol on the road from Boumerdes [province] to Al-Karama. There were two police vehicles in the patrol... The jihad fighters surprised them with a volley of fire. The blitz attack lasted a few minutes... The jihad fighters killed one police officer and wounded three others, took the apostates' weapons and returned to their bases safely. We [take this opportunity] to deny press reports that a jihad fighter was killed in this battle."

ISI Claims Responsibility for Suicide Attack in Iraqi Parliament

In a communiqué posted April 13, 2007 on Islamist websites, the ISI claimed responsibility for the April 12, 2007 suicide attack in the Iraqi parliament, which is located inside the Green Zone.

Special ISI Report - "The Harvest of the Fourth Year of the Blessed Jihad"

On April 11, 2007, Islamist websites posted an ISI document titled "The Harvest of the Fourth Year of the Blessed Jihad," presenting the major tactical and strategic developments in the Iraqi jihad arena over the past year. As one of the major developments, it lists the establishment of the ISI itself, and presents its achievements and advantages: The ISI, it explains, unites the Sunni jihad forces under a single banner, thus preventing strife within the Sunni camp, and also ensures that the Sunnis who are willing to settle for "semi-solutions" will not dominate the Iraqi jihad arena. In addition, the ISI enables the Sunnis to thwart the Shi'ites' plot to rule Baghdad and to eliminate Sunnism in Iraq as part of their broader plan for the entire region. Moreover, it will enable the Sunnis to continue the struggle against the Shi'ites in Iraq even after the occupiers leave, and it will coordinate the broader ideological, legal and political Sunni campaign against the spread of Shi'ism in the region. Finally, the ISI constitutes a first step towards the renewal of the Islamic Caliphate, which will bring all Muslims back to Islam and place them under the rule of the shari'a.

Islamist Websites Monitor No. 87

ISI Announces Execution of 20 Officers Affiliated with Iraqi Government

In a communiqué today, the Islamic State in Iraq (ISI) announced it had executed the 20 Iraqi officers affiliated with the Iraqi government whom it had kidnapped on April 14, 2007.[1]

According to the communiqué, the hostages were killed because the Iraqi government had failed to meet the ISI's demands within 48 hours, as per the ISI's April 14 ultimatum.

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Abu Omar Al-Baghdadi Calls upon All Sunni Jihad Organizations in Iraq to Unite

On April 17, 2007, Islamist websites posted a 40-minute audio recording by ISI leader Abu Omar Al-Baghdadi, produced by the ISI media company Al-Furqan and titled "The Harvest of the Monotheistic State [over the] Years." The following are its main points:

Al-Baghdadi enumerates what he perceives as the Sunni achievements in the last four years, stating that shari'a law is beginning to be implemented, and that there is a massive return to Islam among Sunni youth and support for jihad among the population. Furthermore, he adds, the situation of the jihad fighters has improved on the religious, organizational, military and political levels. Referring to the religious level, Al-Baghdadi states that today, there isn't a single Muslim home that does not have a martyr, a prisoner or a fighter missing in action, and that hundreds wish to be martyrs, including women. As for the organizational level, he says that "there has been significant qualitative and quantitative development, and the mujahideen have expanded the area in which shari'a is implemented." Al-Baghdadi next informs the jihad fighters in Iraq that "the Al-Quds One rocket has entered the industrial military manufacture phase." He also praises jihad, saying that the achievements were attained only through armed struggle, and not by peaceful means, since "the world respects only those who have power."

Al-Baghdadi calls on the Sunnis to unite, presenting unity as a religious duty and as an important component of victory, and warns against fitna (civil strife) and against collaboration with the Americans and their supporters. In this context, he addresses the Sunni jihad organizations that have not pledged allegiance to him and have not joined the ISI, including Jaysh Al-Ansar, Jaysh Al-Mujahideen and Al-Jaysh Al-Islami, and says, "The friendship between us is deep, and our ties of trust and love are too strong to be damaged... Rest assured that [the ties] between us are stronger than some assume." Addressing the jihad group Kataib Thawrat Al-Ishrin, he says that, in spite of the "devil that is Islamic Party" that is "lying between us," the wise commanders of Kataib [Thawrat Al-Ishrin] understood the situation and sat with their brothers in the ISI in order to prevent fitna.

Al-Baghdadi then denies that his organization deliberately kills Muslims, and calls on the ISI fighters to be moderate, to be kind to those who do good and to avoid wronging [even] to those who do wrong. Finally, he defends the establishment of the ISI and lists numerous reasons why it should continue to exist, including the argument that it was "founded upon the [severed] limbs of the martyrs and watered with their blood."