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.
An Islamic State (ISIS) supporter likely based in Kansas on Facebook is part of a large pro-ISIS clique on the social media platform.
EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Media Operative Reports On ISIS Defeat In Sirte, Calls For Attacks In The West
On December 6, 2016 an Islamic state (ISIS) media operative who may be operating from ISIS territory in Iraq or Syria posted on Facebook a message in French acknowledging the organization's defeat in Sirte, Libya, praising the sacrifice made by the fighters, including women suicide bombers, and promising that they will fight to the death.
On December 11, 2016, a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) Telegram channel posted an analysis of the December 10 bombing at the Besiktas Stadium in Istanbul, which killed 38 – 31 police and seven civilians – and wounded some 160 others. On December 11, the PKK splinter group TAK claimed the deadly attack.
EXCLUSIVE: Member Of Secret Telegram Group Says He Hacked Into American Airlines, Sabre 'Airlines'
On December 15, 2016, Telegram user in a pro-Islamic State (ISIS) secret Telegram group purportedly showing that he had hacked into American Airlines and “Sabre Airlines” (sic, apparently a reference to the Sabre Airline Solutions company).
EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Weekly: Mujahideen Taking Over Towns In Philippines
In the latest issue of its weekly newsletter Al-Naba', published December 8, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) celebrated its recent efforts to take over the towns of Dar Al-Salam and Banisilan, south of Marawi city in the Philippines. The attack, said ISIS, had caused the deaths of dozens of "Crusader" Philippines soldiers who have been fighting ISIS militants in the country.
EXCLUSIVE: ISIS Claims Responsibility For Major Fire Outside Moscow
The Islamic State, in its recent issue of its Al-Naba' newsletter, claimed responsibility for the major fire earlier this week in the Losino-Petrovsky suburb east of Moscow. ISIS said that the attack was carried out by one of its soldiers in response to its call to target "Crusader" countries, interests, and nationals.
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On December 13, 2016, the pro-ISIS Telegram Channel Tracking the Apostates of Egypt; Kill Them posted a number of photos of Egyptian military personnel whom it described as "wanted by the Islamic State."
The 33rd issue of the Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) weekly Al-Masra, which was released on December 14, 2016, featured an article titled "Even in his Mosque." The article is a response to the recent audio statement by ISIS spokesman Abu Al-Hassan Al-Muhajir, in which he called to target scholars opposing the Islamic State.
On December 13, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) Ninawa province released a 47-minute video touting operations by the group's anti-tank unit in Iraq. The video focuses specifically on shattering the image of the U.S.-made Abrams tank as an invincible "beast" on the battlefield, and, by extension, on demoralizing demoralize the Iraqi military, which relies heavily on these tanks in its fight against ISIS.
ISIS Video Shows Russian Base In Palmyra
On December 13, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) news agency A'maq released a video documenting a Russian military base in Palmyra that was taken over by the group. In the video, which is 2:40 minutes in duration, ISIS fighters walk through the base. The video shows the tents used by the Russian troops, military equipment they left behind – much of it destroyed – including large quantities of rifles taken as booty, and some Russian-language written material.
ISIS Fighters And Supporters Rejoice At Recapturing Of Palmyra
On December 11, 2016, the official ISIS news agency A'maq and the ISIS information office in Homs Province, Syria, issued communiques announcing that the city of Tadmur (Palmyra) had been recaptured by "Islamic State fighters." A'maq reported that ISIS fighters are in complete control of the city and its surroundings, and that they captured a large amount of loot from the Syrian army and Shi'ite militias fighting alongside it.
Following the bombing at a Coptic church in Cairo on December 11, 2016, which left 23 dead and injured dozens more, jihadis took to social media to express their satisfaction, even before any organization claimed responsibility. Many ISIS supporters shared posts on social media, especially on Telegram, explaining why Egypt's Coptic Christians deserve punishment, while others vowed that Egyptian Christians will either be expelled or slaughtered.
ISIS Statement: Coptic Church Attack In Egypt Was Carried Out By 'Martyr' Abu Abdallah Al-Masry
On December 13, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) in Egypt released a statement claiming that the attacker in the December 11, 2016 St. Peter's Church bombing in Cairo, which killed at least 25 and wounded another 49 people, had been one Abu Abdallah Al-Masry, who blew himself up inside the church.
Egypt Identifies Cairo Church Bomber; Security Sources: Bombing Carried Out By ISIS Sinai Cell
On December 12, 2016, The Egyptian Interior Ministry released the identities of the members of the cell that had sent the suicide bomber to carry out the December 11 bombing at a Coptic church in Cairo's Abbasiyya district. The government accused the Muslim Brotherhood of carrying out the attack as part of a plot to sow religious discord in the country. The bomber, 22-year old Mahmoud Shafiq Muhammad Mustafa from Fayoum, had, according to the Egyptian press, been arrested in the past for terrorist activities during a Muslim Brotherhood rally, and had used the online handle Abu Dujana Al-Kinani. News outlets sympathetic to the Muslim Brotherhood stressed that his online posts had expressed opposition to the movement and sympathy for jihadi ideas – for example, he quoted Osama bin Laden approvingly – in an attempt to disprove the government's claims. The Muslim Brotherhood also stated in a communiqué that the government's identification of the bomber was fabricated, and that Mustafa had been killed months ago.
Article In Fourth Issue Of ISIS's 'Rumiyah' Magazine Encourages Widows On Jihad Fronts To Remarry
On December 7, 2016, the Islamic State released the fourth issue of its magazine Rumiyah, which is produced by the organization's Al-Hayat Media Center and is published simultaneously in several languages. This issue featured an article titled "Marrying Widows Is An Established Sunnah," which encouraged widows to remarry after the death or martyrdom of their husbands.
ISIS: We Downed American RQ-7 Drone Near Haditha Dam
On December 10, 2016, the Islamic State (ISIS) reported via its official news agency A'maq that on December 8 it had downed a RQ-7 drone near the Hadith Dam using a 23-mm mortar.
In New Video, AQIM Vows To Continue Targeting Tunisian Regime
On December 3, 2016, Al-Andalus, the official media company of Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) posted a 55-minute video on its official Telegram channel titled "The Lions of Kirouan." The video documents that activity of AQIM's Uqba bin Nafi Brigade, named for the Muslim warlord who conquered Tunisia in the 7th century CE, which fights against the Tunisian regime.
Syria-Based Jihadi Group Commemorates Moroccan Fighter Who Lived In Spain, Was Obsessed With Soccer
On December 15, 2016, Jabhat Ansar Al-Dine ("Supporters of the Religion Front"), a jihadi group based in Syria, released a video commemorating Abu Osama Al-Andalusi, a Moroccan fighter from the city of Tangier, who had attended school in Spain and was obsessed with soccer.
Taliban Issues Statement On Ongoing Crisis In Aleppo
On December 12, 2016, the Taliban released a statement on its website about the ongoing crisis in the besieged city of Aleppo in which it extended its sympathies to the suffering Syrians and called on the entire Islamic world to end its indifference and to act to "prevent the suffering of women, children and unarmed civilians." Also in the statement, the group stressed its position against any foreign intervention in Syria. Below is the statement released by the Taliban, in the original English.
