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 media@memri.org. Please include your name, title, and organization in your email.
EXCLUSIVE: ISIS-Affiliated Media Company Attacks Soccer Fandom Among Muslim Youth
On April 17, 2016, the ISIS-affiliated media company Al-Wafa' tweeted an article from its official Twitter account titled "Soccer - The Hammer That Destroys Al-Walaa' Wal-Baraa Among Nations." The article, by Abu Al-Laith Kutada Al-Ghazi, claims that young Muslims' affinity for soccer, a game popular among "infidel nations," is dangerous. He warns that the misguided culture surrounding soccer distances Muslims from the values of their religion, especially that of Al-Walaa' Wal-Baraa' - the concept of loyalty to Muslims and rejection of non-Muslims.
EXCLUSIVE: Report: Dozens Of European Jihadis Moved To Libya, Mali Following Brussels Attacks
On April 24, 2016, the Algerian daily Elkhabar reported that following the March 2016 Brussels attacks, dozens of European jihadis of North African origin have moved to Africa, fearing arrest and interrogation by anti-terrorism security forces that have been cracking down on Salafi jihadi groups.
On April 1, 2016, an Al-Qaeda supporter on Twitter named Abu Abd Al-Kareem Al-Gharbi launched a campaign titled "America, the Head of the Snake" in which he urged participants to post anti-U.S. content and called on Muslims living in the U.S. to carry out lone wolf attacks.
U.S.-Born Media Activist Interviews Women In Jabhat Al-Nusra-Held Territory In Syria
On April 24, 2016 U.S.-born Media activist Bilal Abdul Kareem, a reporter with "On the Ground News," released his latest interview, conducted with two women in Syria. It is likely that the interview was carried out in Idlib, since Kareem frequently reports from that area, although the location is merely referred to as "the liberated territories in the war-torn country of Syria." Kareem promoted his interview on his Twitter and Facebook accounts.
U.S.-Born Media Activist Bilal Abdul Kareem Interviews Maldivian Jabhat Al-Nusra Fighters In Syria
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Bilal Abdul Kareem, a journalist with "On The Ground News," recently released a three-part interview he conducted with Maldivian Jabhat Al-Nusra fighters in Idlib, Syria. Kareem also explored the living quarters of several fighters, and interviewed local Syrians as well, asking about their views of the Maldivian fighters. Bilal 'Abdul Kareem, originally from New York, converted to Islam at the age of 27 and travelled to Egypt to study. He is pro-Al-Qaeda, and, accordingly, supports Al-Qaeda's Syria affiliate Jabhat Al-Nusra (JN), as well as Jaysh Al-Fath (JAF) of which JN is a part, and is critical of ISIS. He has previously posted his interviews with JAF and JN fighters and clerics, and also shared them via Facebook and Twitter.
Issue 26 of the Islamic State's (ISIS) weekly newsletter Al-Naba featured an interview with the ISIS security official in Saudi Arabia's Najd province. Praising ISIS's attacks on Shi'ites and Saudi security personnel in recent months, the official noted, inter alia, that ISIS relies on such attacks to delegitimize and weaken the Saudi regime, to expose Muslims to ISIS's message, and to garner supporters and recruits.
On April 24, 2016 the pro-ISIS hacking group United Cyber Caliphate announced on its Telegram channel that it had hacked the U.S. State Department and released the personal details of a list of its employees. The statement is titled "wanted to be killed" and reads: "USA You are our primary goal. Your system failed to Tackling [sic] our attacks. Now we will Crush you again."
On April 22, 2016, the pro-ISIS hacker group United Cyber Caliphate (UCC) released names and personal details allegedly belonging to Saudi security officials that it claimed it had obtained after hacking into the database of the Saudi defense and interior ministries. UCC published the list on its Telegram channel and Twitter account, and stated that it had gained access to the details of 18,000 employees in the security departments. However, the group only released a few screenshots of personal information pages showing names, ages, nationalities, ID numbers, names of security departments, phone numbers, and email addresses.
ISIS In Al-Furat Province, Iraq Posts Pictures Of Two Fighters Killed In Combat, One Of Them Russian
On April 28, 2016, the information office for the Islamic State (ISIS) in Al-Furat Province, Iraq, posted pictures of two of its fighters killed in combat.
ISIS Video Documents Treatment Of Orphans, Shows Children Undergoing Military Training
On April 24, 2016, the media office of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Ninawa Province, Iraq released a video documenting its treatment of orphans and showing their daily activities which include lectures presented by ISIS officials and military training.
Issue 9 Of French-Language ISIS Magazine 'Dar Al-Islam' Calls To Kill Prominent French Imam
On April 26, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) media company Al-Hayat, released the ninth issue of the organization's French-language magazine Dar Al-Islam. The 67-page issue was distributed on pro-ISIS accounts on Twitter and on Telegram.
On April 26, 2016 Minbar Al-Sham uploaded a video titled, "Go Forth" featuring senior Jabhat Al-Nusra (JN) cleric Sheikh Abdullah Muhaysini on its YouTube Channel. The visibly emotional cleric speaks to a large audience of men in a refugee camp. He rails against Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad, Iran, and Russia, and promises to turn Syria into an Iranian cemetery. In the video, he calls for youths over the age of 15 to join the ranks and fight.
TIP Video Documents Battle Over Grain Silos In Ghab Plain, Syria
On April 23, 2016, the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP) released a video documenting the group's assault on the Al-Mansoura grain silos in the Ghab Plain, northwest of Hama. In the last several months, TIP has released several videos documenting different battles against Syrian regime forces in the Ghab Plain.
