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.)
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The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
On November 2, 2016, the Islamic State's (ISIS) Al-Furqan Media released an audio message by ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi. The message comes in response to the ongoing military campaign to liberate the Iraqi city of Mosul from ISIS control. Al-Baghdadi denounces the military campaign while stressing that Allah promised ISIS victory over its enemies. He also appeals to ISIS soldiers everywhere, asking them to remain united and strong in the face of the various attacks against them and their state. Al-Baghdadi also warns Sunnis of a regional conspiracy against them, which is led by ISIS's enemies, while urging them to support the Islamic State and to attack its enemies, including in Saudi Arabia and in Turkey.
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here.
In the months leading up to the U.S. presidential election, jihadis and jihad enthusiasts have been keeping a close eye on developments in the race, and have offered their opinions on the leading candidates. While all jihadis oppose any Muslim participation in the democratic process, they still frequently voice their opinions on certain candidates. In particular, GOP candidate Donald Trump has led many to take to their social media accounts to express their ire regarding his comments about Muslims and other minorities, as well as his reported behavior towards women. On the other hand, some jihadi supporters argued that Clinton's gender should be a disqualifying factor, one of whom quoted a hadith from Sahih Al-Bukhari to underscore his point: "Never will such a nation succeed that makes a woman their ruler."
On October 28, 2016, a French Snapchat user posted a video of herself in the bathroom of a TGV train departing the Gare de Lyon train station in Paris.
On November 1, 2016, the media office of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Al-Furat province released a video featuring photos of U.S. Armed Forces generals, including former CENTCOM commander Gen. Lloyd James Austin and current commander Gen. Joseph Leonard Votel, as well as Maj.-Gen. Michael Nagata and Brig.-Gen. Christopher Burns.
On October 26, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) media group publishing in French, An-Nur Media, distributed a poster denouncing Farid Benyettou, a French jihadi who is now involved in government de-radicalization programs. Benyettou is known for his connection to the Kouachi brothers, who carried out the January 2015 attack on the Paris offices of the Charlie Hebdo weekly.
In an interview in a recent issue of ISIS's weekly newsletter Al-Naba, the head of the organization's "Hijra [migration] Authority" explained the functions of his authority and the religious basis for activity.
EXCLUSIVE: On Instagram, Ontario Man Alleges That He Fought With ISIS In Syria
On November 3, 2016, a Burlington, Ontario man of Pakistani origin claimed in an Instagram conversation that he fought with ISIS in Syria for just under a year.
ISIS Claims A Stabbing Attack In Hamburg, Perpetrator Is At Large
On October 29, 2016, The Islamic State (ISIS) published a communiqué via its A'maq news agency claiming responsibility for a stabbing attack in Hamburg, Germany.
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ISIS Claims The Assassination Of A High Ranking Police Officer In Constantine, Algeria
On October 29, 2016, the Isalamic State (ISIS) news agency A'maq claimed responsibility for the assassination of a high ranking police officer in Constantine, Algeria.
ISIS Claims Stabbing Attack Outside U.S. Embassy In Nairobi
In a message released by its official news agency A'maq on October 29, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) claimed that the stabbing of a guard at the U.S. embassy last Thursday (October 27) had been carried out by "a soldier of the Islamic State."
ISIS Claims Responsibility For Assassinating Police Officer In Peshawar, Pakistan
On November 2, 2016 ISIS' A'maq Agency reported that a police officer had been assassinated last night in Peshawar in Northern Pakistan.
On October 30, 2016, the pro-ISIS Telegram channel published a post urging ISIS supporters and soldiers everywhere to emulate terrorist attacks that took place in different parts of the world including cities in the U.S, Europe, Asia and Africa, and to use cars, knives and rocks to kill the infidels.
A'maq Releases Video Of Mali-Based Jihad Group Al-Murabitoun Joining ISIS
A'maq, the official news agency of the Islamic State (ISIS), has released a 2-minute video in which 'Adnan Abu Al-Walid Al-Sahrawi, the leader of the Mali-based jihad group Al-Murabitoun (also known as Katibat Al-Murabiteen), pledges allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, thereby officially joining the organization.
Islamic State (ISIS) supporters are circulating a poster that shows the number of accounts they managed to open on Twitter, Facebook and Telegram during the month of October, despite efforts by those platforms to shut down ISIS accounts.
On November 2, 2016, the United Cyber Caliphate (UCC) hacking group announced on its Telegram channel that it had launched two cyber-attacks. One attack targeted the Telegram channel of Raqqa-based activist group "Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently" (RIBSS), which reports on crimes perpetrated by both the Assad Regime and ISIS.
Anti-ISIS Facebook Pages Targeted Daily By ISIS Supporters, Attacks Orchestrated On Telegram
A pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channel named "Social Media Operations" orchestrates attacks on the Facebook pages of ISIS critics.
ISIS Video Shows Destruction Of Russian Military Helicopter Near Palmyra, Syria
The Islamic State news agency A'maq has posted a brief video showing the targeting and subsequent destruction of a Russian military helicopter near Palmyra, Syria.
Jabhat Fath Al-Sham Publishes Rare Photos Of Its Leader Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani
On October 30, 2016, Jabhat Fath Al-Sham (formerly Al-Qaeida-affiliated Jabhat Al-Nusra) published rare photos of its leader, Abu Muhammad Al-Joulani.
Jaysh Al-Fath Issues Communiqué Declaring Launch Of Operation To Break Aleppo Siege
On October 29, 2016, the general military command of the Jaysh Al-Fath coalition published a communiqué announcing a new campaign to break the siege on Aleppo, called "The Martyr Abu Omar Saraqib Raid." (Saraqib is a leader of Jabhat Fath Al-Sham - formerly Jabhat Al-Nusra - who was recently killed in an airstrike).
AQAP Media Arm Al-Malahem Features Group's Leader Qasim Al-Rimi In Its 'Concepts' Series
On October 26, Al-Malahem, the media arm of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), released a new video featuring the group's commander Qasim Al-Rimi delivering a short speech about the concept of brotherhood. The video is part 16 of the "concepts" video series. The video is 4:52 long and dated August 2016.
AQIM Release Video Of Plea From Romanian Hostage To His Government
On November 1, 2016, Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) released a minute-long video of the Romanian hostage Iulian Ghergut who was kidnapped in April 2015 in North Burkina Faso, near the Malian and Niger border. This is the second video of the hostage publicly released since his abduction.
On October 6, 2016, the An-Nur Media Center, an official French-language Islamic State (ISIS) media outlet, distributed four animated video tutorials on secure internet communication.
Several days ago, rebel factions fighting to liberate Aleppo announced the launch of a new military campaign named after the late Jabhat Fath Al-Sham (formerly Jabhat Al-Nusra) commander Abu Omar Saraqib, who was killed recently in an airstrike. The campaign has so far focused on liberating the city's 1070 Apartments neighborhood from Syrian regime and pro-Syrian regime forces.
On November 1, 2016, Sawt Al-Islam, the media arm of the Syrian branch of the Turkestan Islamic Party (TIP), released a YouTube video featuring the last will and testament and the martyrdom operation of one of its Turkish fighters named Abd Al-Aziz Al-Turki, who targeted a neighborhood known as the 1070 Apartments Project.
In recent months, the Mali-based jihad group Ansar Dine has increased its activity across the Malian Sahel and northern Mali, targeting Malian security forces as well as UN and French forces deployed in the area.
Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan Launches English Radio Broadcast, Promotes It On Facebook, Telegram
On October 30, 2016, Umar Media, the media wing of the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), announced the launching of and English-language radio broadcast.
The English-language broadcast joins TTP's Urdu-language broadcast, which the group regularly posts on its Facebook page.
